The Sacrifices of Love: small acts, big impact

Both dogs darted through the sticker patch to get into the canal water and emerged with stickers deeply embedded in their fur. As we painstakingly picked the stickers out, the dogs whimpered and grimaced in pain. It broke my heart to see them suffering and scared. I felt like echoing my dad’s old saying, “This hurts me more than it’s hurting you.” The experience wasn’t just emotionally painful; the stickers pricked my fingers, leaving them burning long after we were done. All this, for the sake of love.

Love in Action

This year, I’ve been assisting my youngest with college expenses. It’s been a significant portion of my monthly income, but I know it’s necessary and greatly appreciated. As parents we often sacrifice to provide our children what they need. Soon, he will graduate and no longer need my financial support, but it may take some time for my bank accounts to recover. Yet, because I love him, I wouldn’t have done it any other way. 

When I think about showing love to another, I recognize that it often involves a sacrifice. Sometimes, it’s a sacrifice of time, like the time I spent 12 hours driving my mom to doctor’s appointments within a 32-hour span. Other times, it’s a sacrifice of resources, like when I prepared a meal for a sick friend or new mom. The tattoo on my foot reminds me that love is a verb–it requires action and often sacrifice. 

One of my favorite praise songs reminds me of this truth: “I’m forgiven, because you were forsaken. I accepted, you were condemned. I’m alive and well, your spirit is within me because you died and rose again. Amazing love, how can it be, that you my king would die for me…” The picture of laying down one’s life for another is the ultimate sacrificial love.

The Practice of Sacrifice

A speaker I once heard  said, “It’s all just theory until you walk in the door at night. That’s the laboratory of life where we get to practice that theory.” Loving our spouses, partners and significant others is about putting love into daily practice. Loving our children often means laying down our lives for them. Caring for pets, family, co-workers, and neighbors requires sacrifice rooted in action. That’s the true beauty of love, and something we all need.