First Corinthians 13 is one of my favorite chapters in the Bible. It reminds me how I am called to love others on a daily basis; it is a chapter that I try to read often so that I don’t fall out of practice. In one of my devotions through the years, the last part of First Corinthians 13 was the focus and they used the Message version which I have grown to love, “But for right now, until that completeness, we have three things to do to lead us toward that consummation: Trust steadily in God, hope unswervingly, love extravagantly. And the best of the three is love.” 1 Corinthians 13:13

Friends how beautiful is that verse? Let’s think about it for a minute, trust steadily in God. If we do that, those things called worry, fear, or anxiety should pretty much disappear or at least be limited and that draws us closer to our Lord because we don’t let the “negatives” of life get in the way. Hope unswervingly. Hope is my favorite word and to have that hope that lasts no matter what, (insert deep sigh, ahhhh) it gives my soul such peace. Then we are called to love extravagantly. When you look up the word extravagant you find several definitions. I came across this one: going beyond what is deserved or justifiable. Loving others when they may not love us back, behave the way we think they should, or loving them even if they hurt us can be very difficult, but we are called to love others whether we think they deserve it or not. God loves us everyday no matter what and we are called to do the same.

So what does all of that lead us to – the trusting steadily in God, hoping unswervingly, and loving extravagantly? It leads us toward the great consummation – the great perfection – the great fulfillment – eternity with our Lord and Savior, our joyfully ever after! Friends, the greatest of these is LOVE. We are all still “works in progress” and every day is a new day that we are able to wake up with a fresh start. May you find love everywhere you go today and may you share it with all of those you meet. Have a most blessed and LOVE-filled day my friends!

Prayer

Loving God, help us to love one another as You have loved us. Encourage us to trust steadily in You, hope unswervingly, and to love extravagantly. We thank you for being the God of Love and sending the greatest gift of Love to us. In Your name we pray. Amen.