In his book Sources of Strength, former President Jimmy Carter wrote about interviewing Eloy Cruz, a Cuban pastor who had gained tremendous respect among poor immigrants from Puerto Rico. Carter asked him, "What is the secret to your success?"

Pastor Cruz replied, "Señor Jimmy, we need only two loves in our lives — love for God, and love for the person who happens to be in front of us at any time."

I love that. I have a friend whose spiritual discipline is to try to see the image of God in every person she meets — cashiers, waiters, teachers, strangers. Think about how that practice would change our interactions. How we listen. How we speak.

Jesus said the greatest commandment is to love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, strength, and mind. And the second is like it: love your neighbor as yourself. He went on to say that these two commandments are the sum of all the law and the prophets.

What strikes me about both Pastor Cruz and my friend is that their faith had become a practice — something they actually did, moment by moment, person by person. It's easy to love humanity in the abstract. It's harder — and far more important — to love the specific, complicated, beautiful person right in front of you. That is where Jesus always seemed to be. And that is where he invites us to be as well.

Let us pray: Loving and Gracious God, help us to love you with all our heart. And help us to love whoever happens to be standing in front of us at any point in time. Today we pray for those who serve us regularly — nurses, men and women in the military, firefighters, teachers, doctors, police officers, and other public servants. We pray also for those who serve behind the scenes, and for those we most often forget. May your blessing rain down on them. We ask in Jesus' name. Amen.