Love, Be Kind, Forgive

Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. 1 John 4:8

I used to have a hard time telling my friends I loved them. Not sure why but now it is done easily. It is simple to love when love is returned but difficult to do when you know the other person may not like you. Also it sometimes is hard to love an individual who is a tyrant, bully,  or just plain evil and mean. But the Bible tells us to love. 

An exercise in love would be to pray for your enemies and those who do evil and even curse you. It tells us that in Matthew 5:44. It is hard as I well know. Somehow when you do this you feel better. Maybe a hard relationship at work. Perhaps tension in a relationship married or otherwise. God has a way of setting you free when you are able to love, show kindness, and forgive. 

Whether you feel like it or not in your quiet time think of those people hard to love or those you need to forgive and release to God. 

PRAYER: Thank you for the power to love through you and in turn share kindness. It is hard so give me your strength. In Jesus' name. Amen.

They Deserve This!

It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.1 Corinthians 13:5

The verse given above refers to love. Many times when we are hurt we feel  like getting back at  the one who hurt us. Perhaps you refuse to truly forgive and forget, holding  grudges against a friend or family member. This type of treatment is painful and it is mean. 

It hurts when you are shunned or treated poorly by someone.  Harboring hurts and un forgiveness can build up a wall of resentment. This is exactly the kind of stuff Satan loves, discord and anger among brothers and sisters in Christ and family members. God's recipe for a successful relationship  should include the ingredients of honor, peace, forgiveness, sacrifice, and forgetting wrongs.

Try something if you will. If you can not forget something someone did to you ask God to help you. There is nothing gained by trying to throw up a wrong in someone else's face. Let the Holy Spirit convict. Your job is to pray, love, and forgive.

PRAYER: Lord I want to be a representative of your type of love. Give me your strength to resist making lists of wrongs. Help me to remember to pray for those who may have hurt me, as your word tells me to. In Jesus' name. Amen.