Valentine's Day is tomorrow. I am still not sure how I feel about this holiday. My husband and I firmly believe that we should show our love to our spouse 365 days a year, not just 1. We should do those little acts of love regularly, not just when the calendar tells us to. Yet on the other hand, it is nice to have that day to do extra things and go all out.
Whether you are one of those who goes all out red and hearts and lovey-dovey for the day or one who dismisses the day completely, this is for you.
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 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...
I Corinthians 13:4-8
The Bible tells us in I John 4 that God is love. So let's do this again a little differently.
Jesus is patient, Jesus is kind. He does not envy, He does not boast, He is not proud.
He is not rude, He is not self-seeking, He is not easily angered, He keeps no record of wrongs.
Jesus does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. He always protects, always trusts,
always hopes, always perseveres. Jesus never fails...
I Corinthians 13:4-8
Oh that describes Jesus perfectly! Jesus is all of those things. He is love. Well, we are supposed to be Christ-like. Correct? So let's try this yet again.
Jenifer is patient, Jenifer is kind. She does not envy, she does not boast, she is not proud.
She is not rude, she is not self-seeking, she is not easily angered, she keeps no record of wrongs.
Jenifer does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. Jenifer always protects, always trusts,
always hopes, always perseveres. Jenifer never fails...
I Corinthians 13:4-8
Hmmm....
If I were honest with you, I would say that is not true. I am not always patient and kind. I am, at times, easily angered. And yes, I have been known to keep record of my husband's wrong doings. I do fail.
The Bible tells us what love is and it tells us that God is love. It also tells us that we are to be like God. Take out the word love and add your name. Does it match up perfectly? I would imagine it doesn't.
Friends, we need to commit to our spouse, and even to our families and friends, to strive to be like God and to be love. I want to encourage, this Valentine's Day and all the days that follow, let's be love. Memorize I Corinthians 13 and practice putting your name in there and striving to make it true.
I want to be like Christ. I want to be love.
The link up service we previously used now places ads on the link up. Some of the ads do not follow with our faith and we felt it was inappropriate. In order to remove the ads, we must pay and as a ministry with no income, we are not able to do that. So we are changing our link up! Each Wednesday we'd like to invite you to leave a link to your latest blog post in the comments. We still desire to connect women of God with one another and encourage each other in Christ. So grab a cup of coffee or glass of sweet tea, sit back and visit a few blogs. Be encouraged and share your own stories.
I love reading 1 Corinthians 13 with the lens of "Jesus is..." So true! My husband and I don't celebrate Valentine's Day very well, but we are big believers in the 365 day celebration. Thanks for this, Jenifer.
ReplyDeleteMy link is here:
https://www.lisanotes.com/death-hope/
I think of Valentine's Day like Thanksgiving Day. We're supposed to be thankful 365 days a year, but it's nice to have Thanksgiving as a special focus at that time. Or a birthday - we're to honor each other every day, but it's fun to mark that special day to let people know we're glad they are here.
ReplyDeleteI probably need to read 1 Corinthians 13 every day.
My post this week is It's OK to Say It Hurts: https://barbarah.wordpress.com/2019/02/11/its-okay-to-say-it-hurts/
Here's my collection of thoughts on love from great thinkers and writers--and a tiny thought of my own thrown in: https://michelemorin.wordpress.com/2019/02/11/timeless-words-love-valentines/
ReplyDeleteMany blessings to you! Here's my latest post:
ReplyDeletehttps://bethwillismiller.blogspot.com/2019/02/the-best-is-yet-to-be.html
My post this week is about Great Love Prompts Great Sacrifice. https://drmichellebengtson.com/great-love-prompts-great-sacrifice-its-what-love-does/
ReplyDeleteDealing with Winter Homeschool Burnout: http://www.legacyhomeschoolreflections.com/2019/02/09/355/
ReplyDeleteMy Happy Homemaker post for this week:
ReplyDeletehttps://collettaskitchensink.blogspot.com/2019/02/happy-homemaker-monday-21119.html
Colletta
I love your idea of adding your name to the verse. It definitely opens our eyes to how our actions are supposed to speak love, but how we miss the mark. As I was reading, all I could think was how I did not want to put my name in there. I agree with you, we should love and show love to our spouses everyday, not just on Valentine's day. Thank you so much for sharing this.http://keepingthetiethatbinds.com/2019/02/12/i-am-an-idolater-the-scale-is-my-golden-calf/
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear about the changes in your link-up, but so grateful you offer us to share our links here. Thank you for always being such a blessing to all of us and for all you do! Here is my link this week about a recent experience we had while eating in a hotel dining room. https://www.homespundevotions.com/2019/02/when-darkness-seems-inpenetrable.html
ReplyDeleteI wrote about the need to train our children without being afraid. I hope it helps someone.. https://mcwglenys.blogspot.com/2019/02/dont-be-afraid-to-be-mother.html
ReplyDelete