February 28, 2017

February 28, 2017

1 Corinthians 13:4-5

"Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged."

Last day of February! I think this verse is kind of perfect for the last day of February, don't you think? 

Talking about love and what it is and isn't.

I am a hopeless romantic. I love LOVE. I'm huge on love and romantic stuff and all of that.

I think love is beautiful and the way God made it is beautiful. 

Man and woman, loving each other with everything they've got.

Or even if it's not romantic, because I love a lot of people. With a strong love. I love my parents.

I love my friends and I couldn't live without them, but that's not romantic. 

Love has so many different meanings. And these verses in 1 Corinthians really breaks down what love is.

Patient and kind, not jealous or boastful or proud or rude... 

Love is giving up some of yourself to show kindness and compassion to someone else.

When you love someone, you aren't thinking of yourself. You're thinking of the person you love.

It's hard to be patient right? And kind all of the time. Love has its ups and downs sometimes. Sometimes everything is perfect, and sometimes you want to slap your friend and say "No don't do that! That's not smart." But we aren't supposed to get angry or irritated. Not with love. 

I think that it's hard for some people to love because they have trouble giving themselves up.

They have trouble not thinking of themselves when they love, and that's not healthy. 

You have to be willing to put yourself down a level, and put others before you, and that is hard.

It's especially hard to love when the person you're trying to love is not very kind.

When the person you're attempting to show compassion to does not reciprocate the feeling.

But God calls us to love. 

He calls us to love not only our friends or significant other, but everyone.

Because as Rachel Scott said, "People will never know how far a little kindness can go."

Go try this week to love on more people. Smile at more people. Hug more. Laugh more.

That's my challenge for you this week and this year.