It’s empty without love.
And do everything with love. 1 Corinthians 16:14
There’s really nothing more, and there’s nothing less. Name one solitary thing we can do in this life more effectively without love.
I’m waiting…
Still waiting…
Among many other things, Webster defines love as “strong affection for another arising out of kinship or personal ties”. It’s a pretty good description, the more I think of it. But truthfully, it still leaves a hole for me. Where is a deeper, raw, uncut version of this “strong affection”? The kind of affection that looks at everything someone says, does, and still can say “I love you”!
God is Love
Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. 1 John 4:7-8
God is love.
He proved it.
He lived it.
God gave us the best example of love in sacrificing His own son to purchase my freedom from my sin and wrongdoing. His model, while He lived among people, was a constant and unmistakable lens of love.
It’s empty without love
At Adult and Teen Challenge, our long-term recovery programs are often referred to as a disciplined environment, where structure and routine are foundational to restructuring our lives.
Because of this, we frequently need to remind ourselves that rules are never more important than love. We will ask ourselves, “am I leading this person out of a love for the law, or out of the law of love“? Do I truly care about this person, and want the end goal to be that they feel the love of God through my actions?
Sometimes we will lead others with the sole purpose of them knowing that we love the law more than them. They will know the difference.
The lens of love
All things I do without the lens of love will ultimately expose themselves as ineffective-unless malicious intent was my end game all along.
When I speak, act, or live my life in relation to others, is it love or law that they see in me? They will know the difference.
Prayer: Lord, show me today how I can love better. Show me the law of love. With everyone I encounter today, let them know that they are loved through my actions and words.
