"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 records of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres." 1 Corinthians 13:4-7
As a little girl, I remember learning the above verse and being told to put my name in where the word “love” is listed instead. For example:
“Angela is patient, Angela is kind. She does not envy, she does not boast, she is not proud…” Yeah, applying scripture like that and making it personal can well…make one a little uncomfortable. Am I all those things? Do I love like that? Sadly, the answer is “no.” I’m not always patient…especially when I’m running late and trying to get my 3 girls out the door in time. How about the “keeping no record of wrongs?” Yeah….just ask my husband…I struggle in that area too.
Sally and I end our book: You Are Loved with a challenge…now go and do likewise! Love others like God loves you.
"God is patient, God is kind. He does not envy, He does not boast, He is not proud…"
Now that we have a deeper understanding of how dearly loved we are by God, He challenges us to live lives that are stained with His love for others to see. God’s love should change us, transform us and make us stand out from the world. We are called to love differently. We love when it hurts. We choose to keep no record of wrongs even though our mind makes it hard to forget. We choose to be kind even though the person hasn’t been kind back. We choose to trust, have hope and persevere even when it’s hard and we’d rather throw in the towel and give up. We choose love instead.
God’s love is what colors our life differently. People see it in the way we smile at them. In how we choose to respond to criticism and how we trust God in all things. They see it in the hope that we have at the doctor’s office despite the report, or when we choose to hold our tongue even though we have a great comeback ready to launch at a moments notice. They see it in the patience we extend to our children, husband and friends even though we are feeling anything but patient at the time. We realize we are not perfect, we have our flaws, our short comings…yet despite all of that, God still chooses to love us.
We extend love and grace because love and grace have been extended to us.
“How you live your life today in choosing to love others will determine the way your children, non-Christians, your family, and friends learn what God’s love is like. To leave a legacy of love is to leave a fragrance of His love wherever you go.”- Sally Clarkson
Sweet friends, may the beautiful fragrance of your love fill your homes, hearts and lives today! Who do you need to reach out to with the love of God?
“…the more I humble myself to love others no matter what, the more my love and worship of God has grown because I realize how much it cost Him to be humble and give to a totally rebellious and ungrateful world. Practicing love increases your love for God.”- Sally Clarkson
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I'd like to take a second and thank YOU for joining us this summer as we read You Are Loved together! Thank you so much for joining us and digging into God's Word together! I pray God has used our book mightily in your life and you can now see how dearly loved you are, and let His love transform your life!
Love God Greatly! -Angela