3 August 2005

The "love" chapter continues - 1 Corinthians 13.

Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. (1 Cor. 13:4-7)

First stop for a second and check any notion of a sentimental love at the door. This is love that is to be the building block of the church. It is the long-haul love that will not abandon us and therefore we are nurtured in such a way that we then, do not abandon others. Looking around at the shape of Christianity in our country, it appears that this kind of love is easily abandoned because so many people want and expect a "religious" experience that they can dictate for themselves and others. When it is so easy to just push the "other" side off and away from us, who is going to take the time to bring them closer and engage them in prayerful conversation? And yet, we are called to be patient. Within that patience, there is more time to consider the way of Jesus' love and how when we say we follow Jesus, we are talking about this love that heals and hopes and works within a new set of boundaries that always contain more than we think they can. For this kind of vision of love, we will be able to endure all things. I take that as a promise.

Connection: Rejoice in the truth and watch what begins to take place with the dark corners of our lives. Things become lit up and we do not have to fear what may be said about us or done to us. We can let go of our way and trust that the way of this Jesus love will lead us into life beyond shallow existence of so many parts of our world.

Come, Lord, Jesus, and lift us up into the loving domain of your eternal rule so that our present will be transformed by your love and prepared for tomorrow. Amen.