The Most Excellent Way: Love

I attend a Wednesday night Ladies Bible Class and we are studying the book “Patterns Ways to Develop a God-Filled Life” by Mel Lawrenz.

This past Wednesday we studied the chapter called “The Most Excellent Way – Love”

I learned that “love does not show up as an occasional spectacular event but as the consistent, repetitive design-the pattern-of a person’s life.”  John 15:13 tells me that “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.”  It is easy to forget that all those chores I do for my family and others are really an act of love.  It is easy for me to fall into the trap of feeling under appreciated and then those feelings of anger arise because I think I am the one doing all the work.  I will have to remember next time I fall into the trap to remember that I am showing love when I am doing those never ending chores.

One of my favorite chapters in the bible is I Corinthians 13.  This passage was read at my wedding.  I really liked the way the author listed the shape of love from this chapter in the bible.  Here is his list.

1. Love is mature considerateness (“love is patient, love is kind’).  Love is being as aware of the other person as we are aware of ourselves, giving some slack where we can and cheering the other person on.
2. Love is confident selflessness (“it does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud”).  Love looks at others, out at the world, and finds in that vision things that are far more interesting than self.  Love is the pleasure of bragging about other people instead of making a Big Noise about yourself.
3. Love is charitable awareness (“it is not rude, it is not self-seeking”).  It gives us a distaste for advancing ourselves at the expense of others.  Love has good manners.
4. Love is forbearance and forgiveness (“it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs”).  Love means being a coach, not a referee.
5. Love is wholesome expectation (“love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth”).   We show love when we cheer others on in their victories and when we feel wounded when we witness their failures.
6. Love is protective concern (“it always protects, always trusts”).  Love makes gossip bitter in our mouths and prompts us instead to add to the good reputation of others.
7. Love is optimistic commitment (“it always hopes, always perseveres, love never fails”).  Love means hoping for the best, not as naive optimism or wishful thinking but as an expectation that God can and does do great things because “he fills everything in every way.”

It is hard to understand love.  I can truly love the way I am suppose to love others when I have a love that shows “the only reason that I have a life is because of an act of God’s love, and the only reason I can survive the sorrows, heartaches, shortcomings, and mistakes in this life is because God is love.  God gives me every breath I take and every meal I eat.  God forgives my sins.  I am compelled to love God and then I must love others as good loves me and them.”

Here are the suggestions that the author listed to make everyday love a reality in my life.  Some of these suggestions really showed me areas that I need to work on to have love more evident in my life.

• Listen twice as much as I talk.
• When I think I have listened, check to make sure I did.
• Pray for a person that really irritates me.
• Let someone know when they have done a good thing.
• Invest quality time in the life of a child.
• Choose not to respond to rudeness with rudeness.
• Throw away any written reminders of wrongs done to me.
• Care for my dear husband like Christ cares for the church.
• Look for opportunities to share God’s wisdom and insights with others.
• Be nice when driving – let others merge into my lane.
• Don’t be the center of conversation.  Ask people about themselves.
• Tell someone I will pray for them only if I really intend to pray for them.
• When I am talking to someone, look them in the eyes.

Wow!  I have a lot to think about on this subject of love.