The Book of First Corinthians.
Chapter 13
And now I will show you the most excellent way
1 If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels,
but have not love,
I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.
2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge,
and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love,
I am nothing.
3 If I give all I possess to the poor, and surrender my body to the flames,
but have not love,
I gain nothing.
4 Love is patient, love is kind.
It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
5 It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered,
it keeps no record of wrongs.
6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.
7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
8 Love never fails.
But where there are prophecies, they will cease;
where there are tongues, they will be stilled;
where there is knowledge, it will pass away.
9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part,
10 but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears.
11 When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child.
When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me.
12 Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror;
then we shall see face to face.
Now I know in part;
then I shall know fully,
even as I am fully known.
13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love.
But the greatest of these is love.
Questions to Ponder: Do you know what it means to truly love another person according to God's will? I encourage you to read the words God uses to show love - "patience, kindness, selflessness" - and then pay attention to how you respond to people over the next 7 days. Are you quick to anger when things don't go your way? Are you impatient with people who take longer to complete something then you think they should? Do you redirect the conversation back to how you think and how you feel? Do you get angry when someone tells you something you don't want to hear - even when it's the truth? It's a shame how many people misuse use the word love without understanding what it means - they say "love" but what they actually mean is "lust, want, and need". Are you one of those people? Pay attention to your actions this week and ask God to soften your heart and teach you how to love with His heart rather than your own.
My Prayer: Lord Jesus, please put it on my heart to love my fellow man according to Your will and Your instruction. Guide me to be patient, selfless, kind and considerate to those I claim to love. Put it on my heart to see how I have mistreated others, so I may apologize to them and right my terrible wrongs. Help me to love truth (even when it hurts my ego and fills my soul with shame and guilt) and please show me how to be a protector of truth and to love that which is right, according to Your will. I pray that you will give me a new heart my king - one full of mercy and compassion so that I may show the world your grace and lead them back to You. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
My Prayer: Lord Jesus, please put it on my heart to love my fellow man according to Your will and Your instruction. Guide me to be patient, selfless, kind and considerate to those I claim to love. Put it on my heart to see how I have mistreated others, so I may apologize to them and right my terrible wrongs. Help me to love truth (even when it hurts my ego and fills my soul with shame and guilt) and please show me how to be a protector of truth and to love that which is right, according to Your will. I pray that you will give me a new heart my king - one full of mercy and compassion so that I may show the world your grace and lead them back to You. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.