1 Corinthians 13:3-8/13
Love is patient, love is kind, It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil, but rejoices with the truth, it always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails. -------- (13) And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love, But the greatest of these is love.
We have all heard these verses before, mostly at weddings. Most likely in our own wedding as well. Matter a fact, when the verses are mentioned we think of weddings. However I think we have all missed the fact that these verses are a map for our everyday lives. I have dropped the ball in everyone of these categories, and with not only my wife, but my children, family and friends. I feel bad about it, but we can't go back and fix the past, all we can do is move forward, and hope for another chance to do it the right way.
Family is the hardest part of this. Being an in-law is a prime example. We have to remember that our parents-law now have adult children in their families that they did not raise, this person has different views, or habit, or traits that may take some getting used to. As children we on the other hand were not raised in this new family, and therefore are different, just from that standpoint. This is were I believe these passages are a necessity, as we get to know the other side of the family we need to use every point in which there are about 15. If you notice the first two, (patience and kind) are not actions, they are reactions. What does that tell ya, it tells me that to have patience and to be kind are the hardest to obtain and pull off, in any given situation and with anyone.
I have to say, that aside from the first two, pride (proud) is the hardest part for me. I have a tremendous amount of pride, and releasing it has been a tremendous problem, in marriage as well as in my relationships,(friends, work,etc). I thank God for my wife. I really do, it is cause of a strong wife, a smart woman, God has worked through her to me to help me in this area. It has been no small work, but then again what is in a marriage.
The thing about all 15 points, the Apostle Paul makes in this passage is that, it is no multiple choice part of life. You can't pick just 4 or 5 out of the 15. You can't just say that you'll just work on one. No, it is all 15 or nothing. All 15 is apart of love, and with out love you/we have nothing. As we read in the first part of chapter 13, If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, (that martyrdom) but have not love, I gain nothing.
Love thy neighbor as you love yourself. Christ's words are spoken out in such truth, and meant in no other way. The greatest commandment is Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind, and love thy neighbor as you love yourself. Were are we if we have lost this truth. Folks I have been so far from this, in my marriage, family, friendships, yes I have been forgiven by God, through His son, and my wife loves me as well as my family (I hope), but how long can we test each other before we are all lost. It has taken me a long time to come to this point, I have let quite a few relationships drift away because of the pride, I am in danger and have been in danger of this with family members who were at once so close, that now, I wonder if it is all lost, or if there is a chance to fix, and move on. (?)
I don't know......... I pray everyday for a chance to hug those individuals look them in the eye and assure them that I love them, and that I hold no grudge, no pride, no self-seeking attitude toward them. That no matter the heart of the subject back then, Christ controls my heart now, my mind and body follow, and with that, how can I not love them. There is no way that I can allow this friction and emptiness to continue. Especially family, family is to be close, to help, to lift each other up. Family is supposed to be the true example of the words of the Apostle Paul. We are all different, there for we at the heart of it all need to be patient, kind, not with envy, not boasting, not proud. Never self-seeking, not easily to anger, doesn't hold grudges. Doesn't delight in evil, holds to the truth, always protecting, always keeping hope, always persevering and never failing.
I......., I can go on and on, (fearing if I do, no one would come back and read this blog again, saying man that guy is long winded). O well. As I stated before, the words are of the Holy Spirit, not of me, I pray that all that is said is of honor and glory to our Lord, and not to me, I am just the example. So I'll just end with this, we've all heard it in our own lives. Life is to short, to short for the petty bickering's, and squabbles. To short for macho attitudes and miss communicated words, taken in the wrong context. LETS GET RID OF IT!! Lets lay it all out on the table, and get back to what is real, to what matters, and that is Christ. Plain and simple, Christ is and should be the center of all things in your/our lives, ....... lets bring Him back.
Father, forgive me of my sins, forgive me for not listening to Your word, it has been there, there's no reason for not reading it, it is all on me. Father, I'm sorry, please take this from me and make me whole again in Your eyes. I long to see those who are at a distance from me, I long to speak to them and talk of Your word and love, and how we all should be in Your light. I ask for Your power to descend upon us and bring us all together again. Forgive us all. I pray that the words said here do honor You, do glorify Your name, that they reach some who are falling, or have fallen away, and that they bring those back to the ones who love them dearly. May You forever shine, may Your Spirit never leave, and may we ever long to see Your face. We give You these things, as it always should be, in the name of Your son, Our Redeemer, Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, we pray,
amen
