24 Jun LOVE = REACH Day 13
1 Thessalonians 3:12: “And may the Lord make your love to grow and overflow to each other and to everyone else, just as our love does toward you.”
Today I was going through a box of old love letters from Micky (my husband). We started dating when I was 15 years old and married a week after my 18th birthday. You can see an actual picture of one of the letters below. It is hysterical! I remember us being so in love, but don’t remember us being quiet so lame!
One line of this letter says…. “I will be able to see you more this weekend. I’m planning on coming over on Friday to go street witnessing, I can’t wait,”
Wow! Aren’t you jealous of my intense love letters that I received at the tender age of 16?!
I remember when Micky and I were dating how sweet letters were (this was when phone calls still cost money and cell phones didn’t exist). We lived 45 minutes apart and could only see each other once a week. 22 years of marriage has taught me a lot about love. Love isn’t cheesy letters that are built on emotion, but rather an anchor that holds things in place when the rest of the world is caught in a storm. That kind of love takes time to build.
This past week I had some disappointing news (not earth shattering, just something didn’t go the way I had planned). My instinct was to react and feel like I wanted to cut off the people that had offended me. However, I was quickly reminded that I was placed in the lives of these people for a reason. I needed to slow my reaction time down, speak soft, and react in love.
You see, the world doesn’t expect us to respond in love. People aren’t use to being treated with respect. However, I believe the Lord can make our love grow and overflow to each other and to everyone around us. We can literally spill ourselves out in Love. Love isn’t emotion. It isn’t gooey words of romance. Love is constant. It stays. It fights. It sees the best – especially when the worst is happening.
I have been fortunate to experience the kind of love that stays. There were days and weeks I wanted leave and I am sure Micky has had months and years of those emotions (just kidding, lol)! This man has taught me how Christ loves the Church.
Love grows. Despite what the world says or statistics indicate. True love grows and overflows to each other.
I pray you find someone to love in your home. And I pray you love others even when they are unlovable. I hope we can be a people who amaze our community because we overflow with love. We spill out and impact lives because we genuinely love. The kind of love that surprises others and draws them in.
Maybe someone in your life is hard to love lately. Maybe someone has disappointed, let you down, hurt you, rejected you – I challenge you to stay. I challenge you to pray. I challenge to watch your love grow!
ACT:
Keep reading LOVE DOES by Bob Goff!!
REACH:
Maybe you responded too quickly to someone at work or at home this week? Go back and let them know you love them. Often we sweep those moments under the rug, but I can assure you that if you just say, “I love you – and I am sorry” that it will go so far with that person(s) in the future. Always make deposits of love and kindness so it is there when you need to make a withdrawal.