If any of you have read my book Body, Mind & Spirit: The Awakening, you are already well-aware of how I believe "3" is God's number. Therefore, it should come as no great surprise when I say the most powerful words we can speak to someone else--or even ourselves--are the three words, "I love you."
I must confess that I was a stranger to these words until my third year at Longwood College. I can still remember sitting in the dinning hall and then finding out a friend had just lost her mother. Just a few days later, I then heard that she had lost her dad. This news totally devastated me and forced me to begin to evaluate my own mortality and the inevitability of the death of my parents. And to the lovely lady who may be reading this and you know that this is your tragedy; please know that it was your pain that led to my awakening.
I was so overcome with emotion after hearing this series of terrible events that I called my mom--with tears in my eyes--to let her know how much I loved her despite never having told her. You see, although I had felt love growing up, my parents were never really affectionate to each other so exchanges of "I love you" were not commonplace around the house. However, during this single phone call I made sure mom received a lifetime payment of "I love you," with interest. In fact, as soon as I returned home during break, I made the point of lining-up my entire family and telling each one of them how much I loved them. From that point forward, "I love you" became a norm around the Hackley house and whenever we parted ways, it was the final words exchanged.
Unfortunately, not everyone believes in the sanctity of these words and carelessly toss them around with reckless abandon. One of the most important lessons that I try to reinforce with my 6-yr-old daughter is that we should "love" people and "like" things. Somewhere along the way our great Nation began to embrace the concept of "material realism" and we began to worship things at the expense of others. Everyone seems to be in pursuit of a bigger house, bigger job, bigger car, and bigger paychecks. However, very few are in pursuit of a bigger relationship with God.
The next time we let the words "I love you" pass through our lips, let's mean it. Love is God's currency so if we choose to spend it foolishly, it should come as no surprise when we find ourselves spiritually bankrupt.
About the Author: James Hackley earned a B.S. degree in Physics from Longwood College and an M.S. degree in Engineering from the University of Virginia. He's the founder of Omega Consulting Enterprises, chaplain of a local chapter of Omega Psi Phi fraternity, and faithfully attends Holy & Whole Life Changing Ministries International in Lansdowne, Va. His latest book, Body, Mind & Spirit: The Awakening can be purchased by visiting him at www.jameshackley.com , www.Amazon.com, and http://www.barnesandnoble.com.
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