Do We Really Know How to Love?

For quite a while now, my Pastor has been teaching from Joshua 1:8, which says, "Keep this book of the law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. Meditating on God's word both day and night is the key to knowing God's word for yourself. Just in the way we can sing along to every song on the album of our favorite artist, we should also be able to recall some scriptures when we need them.

My Pastor also pointed out that sometimes, as we meditate on and reread scriptures, God shows us something new in a scripture that we've read several times before. Recently, for him, it was 1 Corinthians 13:4-8.  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 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. God told my Pastor to put his name everywhere love is written or referred to. Now I'll ask you to do the same. It hits a little different when we do that. Doesn't it?

Let's think about this as we show up in the world each day. Challenge yourself to show up in "love" by being more patient and kind. To not envy, boast, or be proud. To not dishonor others or think of others more than ourselves. To not be easily angered or keep track of wrongs. To not take delight in evil but rejoice in truth. To commit to protecting, trusting, being hopeful, persevering, and to uphold these things always.

Many blessings.