I have been thinking a lot about love and how to show love in these times. I can’t talk about love unless I mention 1 Corinthians 13:4-6 “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy; it does not boast; it is not proud. It does not dishonor others; it is not self-seeking; it is not easily angered; it keeps no records of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.” I know I enjoy reading about what love is, and I have even gotten lost in more than a few hallmark fantasies of love. The reality of love is a bit more challenging. It requires us to think of others; first, it requires vulnerability and sacrifice. Mathew 22: 39 states,” and the second is like it. Love your neighbor as yourself. “imagine loving the neighbor that you strongly dislike. How about living in a world where we can love past each other’s faults. I believe it can happen if we allow The Holy Spirit to lead the way. Remember, when we are born again, we are now new creations, loving God’s way is a part of our unique default setting.
The question that I have been wrestling with is how it so easy to point out all the things that others should be doing, and yet when it hits home; it is now how. The answer is both simple and challenging all at the same time. It requires an evaluation of our relationships under the microscope of the 1 Corinthians 13:4-6 & Mathew 22:39. It is the simple part; the challenging part is allowing The Holy Spirit to walk you through the process. The reason this poses a challenge is that most of us (me included) want to do it on our own. Learning to love like Christ is not a sprint; it is a marathon when we became a new creation that was instantaneous; however, walking in love with Christ is daily. He is not as hard on us as we are on ourselves, he has the blueprint, he knows how many times we are going to mess up, and he is not surprised by any of it, His patience is evident in the story of the prodigal son in Luke 15. I am now learning that just sitting with God and telling him how I feel, for example, I do not like this person, but I want you to teach me how to love them. One of the methods that will activate The Holy Spirit. Is my challenge for all of us, be honest, The Holy Spirit will take it from there? Remember the first thing that love is in 1 Corinthian 13: is Patient.