Wednesday February 12, 2003

~ Love in terms of Offering & Sacrifice ~

Love is patient.

Offering your time as a gift to someone you love.

Love is kind.

Giving others due consideration and care.

It does not envy.

Sacrificing your judgement of your life and giving God’s perspective a chance.

It does not boast. It is not proud.

Giving up the act of raising yourself up above others. We are all the same before God.

It is not rude.

Sacrificing narrow-mindedness and ignorance as excuses to offend others.

It is not self-seeking.

Offering up your own desires, wants & needs and placing other’s desires, wants & needs above your own.

It is not easily angered.

Giving up the right to become angry over petty matters and learning to managing your anger properly

Love does not delight in evil,
but rejoices with the truth.

Always choosing and enjoying the way of truth and good, even if choosing evil would feel better.
Paying the price of following truth, regardless of the gains to be had from doing evil.

It always protects, always trusts,
always hopes, always perseveres.

Offering protection to those who need protection
Giving the gift of trust to those who need trust
Offering hope where it cannot be seen
Sacrificing our perception and acknowledging through our actions that Love will always prevail

Love never fails.

Knowing where our hopes lie and placing our faith in what we hold to be true.

~————~

— 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 —

If you truly understand this verse and know what it means to put these words into action,
then you know the heart of God. The love of God is Jesus and his life reflects God’s love.

And so we rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.
— 1 John 4:16 —

I don’t claim to know how to love yet. My love is not yet there, not yet perfect. But I know what it is I speak of, and I know where I have placed my hopes. Can you say the same, my friends?
Each and everyday we make choices, thousands of choices, and from these choices, God may shine though you.

Thank you elusiv8 for the wonderful challenge. May God bless you every day, in every way, and open your eyes to see the blessings that abound all around you.

     Father, it is a wonderful day. Thank you for the sunshine spilling in the windows. There are many brothers and sisters on my mind: kewlness, ah_b, k, blaq, nite owl, amg, completelylost, cwaymon, vic, marc, kyun, lan, lisa, hal, glitterbutt, steven, pops, mom… You never bring people into my life randomly. I have a purpose from You and I pray that You will use me as You will. Shape this crude tool into precisely the instrument You need. To bring Your will to earth, that is my purpose, the bread of my life. May my life reflect Your Word. May I shine, not for myself, but to Your glory and Your purpose. I pray forgiveness for those times where I have fallen short and slipped into sin, like a second skin. I pray all this in name of love made into flesh, Amen.