In Corinthians 13, the Apostle Paul tells us what love is.  His words give us an example of how Christ calls us to love and wants us to be loved.  If you haven’t taken the time to read it, I encourage you to do so.  It is a truly amazing statement about love.

I received an email from a friend of mine who is trying to help her daughter navigate her first attempts at dating.  She had found something on the internet that helped her.  She asked her daughter to take the words of St. Paul in Corinthians 13:4-7 and put her boyfriend’s name in it.  Here is an example:

John (my boyfriend) is patient, is kind.  He does not envy, he does not boast, he is not proud.  He does not dishonor others, he is not self-seeking, he is not easily angered, he keeps no record of wrongs.  He does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  He always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always preservers.  

I hope that you can insert the name of your beloved into these lines and that it is how he or she loves you.  I also pray that you can insert your own name into these lines and that they reflect how you love.

Paul ends his discussion about love with these words, “And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love” (Corinthians 13:13).  In the words of the Cowardly Lion, I say, “Ain’t it the truth.  Ain’t it the truth!”

I have a dear friend who reminds me in dark hours that “God’s in charge.”  It seems too simple a comment… too innocent… but she’s right.  The highs and lows of living on this planet were foretold by Jesus when He said, “In this world you will have trouble.  But take heart!  I have overcome the world”  (John 16:33)..  I believe that when we get to Heaven, Christ will show us the tapestry of our lives and the beautiful gift we were given.

Over the years, I have come to realize that every lesson on this earth centers on love.  That’s the reason that Christianity makes so much sense to me.  It is built on the premise of love.  The Bible tells us that “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.”  (John 3:16)

Christ told us that there are two commandments, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.'” (Luke 10:27)

In our hearts, we know it is true.  Isn’t it love that brings inspiration?  The mother who lost a child to a drunk driver begins an organization to promote awareness.  The father whose child is abducted by a pedophile sponsors a law to protect children.  A wife forgives her husband’s murderer.  Parents help other parents whose children have the same disease.  A son rides hundreds of miles to bring awareness to breast cancer after his mother’s death.  A simple man who lost a daughter now helps lost souls.  Thank you… each of you… for your courage to love in spite of your pain.

Tonight I bask in starlight and love and ask God, ‘what are we that You are mindful of us?’ (Psalm 8).  Thank God, it is because He loves us.