Loving One Another Well - Inspire A Fire

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. 1 Corinthians 13:13

Learning to love God’s way

Valentine’s Day fills us with thoughts of love but not necessarily the right kind. A walk through the mall reveals that the love God speaks of is quite different than what advertisements and entertainment portray. John said, “Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God.” He should be our source of learning how to love.

Broken wedding vows. Broken hearts. Hurt feelings. Ruined friendships. Families destroyed. We don’t do a respectable job of loving.

Jesus’ commands

Jesus said the greatest commandment is to love the Lord with all our heart, soul, and mind, and the second is to love our neighbor as ourselves. However, the greatest insight comes from Paul. He uses action words such as patience and kindness. Instead of worrying about who wounded us.

Learn to forgive

What if we let wrongs slide off our backs like heavy weights rather than dwelling on our differences? How would family and friends respond if instead of reacting in anger, we set aside our perceived rights and forgave? Because we are forgiven, we must choose to follow His example. A failure to do so is to choose to sin against the Author of love.

In truth, the single greatest reason for failure is pride. My pride. Matthew 5:44 says, “But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” Does it not, therefore, make sense that we are to forgive those closest to us? When I pray for those who injure me, my own hurt changes to concern for the well-being of others.

Put others first

Paul says love always protects, trusts, hopes, and perseveres. Clearly, to love well, our emphasis must be on the other person, rather than on ourselves. If I hold onto hurt and anger and pride and refuse to seek forgiveness when someone believes I wronged them, I fail. Therefore, I must offer prayer instead of resentment and forgiveness rather than pride.

Who would God ask you to treat differently?

Norma Gail

Norma Gail writes Fiction to Refresh Your Spirit, exploring the theme of women whose faith triumphs over trials. Her debut novel won the 2016 Bookvana Religious Fiction Award. The sequel was published in 2020. A women’s Bible study leader for over 24 years, Norma is a former Bible Study Fellowship discussion leader, and founding leader of the women’s Bible studies at her church. Her devotionals and poetry have appeared at ChristianDevotions.us, the Stitches Thru Time blog, and in “The Secret Place.” She lives in the mountains of New Mexico with her husband of 48 years. They have two adult children.