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Jenny's Pennies: February Love
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Here’s my 2 cents whether you want it or not!
February: Love
February is the month of love. There are many different kinds of love, but none is greater than the love that our Heavenly Father feels for us, His human creations. John 3:16 says: for God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life.
From the very beginning God gave humans a gift that He did not give to any of His other creations, the choice to love Him. The animals and even the angels were programmed to glorify God in every aspect of their existence. But we humans have a choice to make. God loves us unconditionally, will we love Him back? To love God we must obey Him. Are you living in obedience to God’s word? Of course, God knows that we aren’t perfect and that we will make mistakes, but He sure appreciates the effort!
“Okay, so I love God and I obey Him, so I guess I’m done!” It’s great if you love the Lord and show it in your obedience. But God says that loving Him is not enough, we need to love each other too! In fact we should love each other just as we love ourselves… including our enemies! I know what you’re thinking, how is this possible? How can you love people who don’t like you back or people that you don’t even know?! Well, God gives us an outline of what love is in 1 Corinthians 13:4-7: Love is patient & kind, love does not envy or boast, love is not proud, rude, self seeking, or easily angered. Love keeps no records of wrongs & does not delight in evil. Love rejoices in truth, always protects, always trusts, always hopes, & always perseveres.
If we try to use these tools in all things, with all people, then we can display Christ’s love.
Here’s an example:
You are waiting in line at your favorite clothing store. You are about to buy the perfect outfit for a party that you have to be at in an hour. There is only one person in front of you and the store isn’t that busy, but you have been waiting for ten minutes while the cashier chats with the customer in front of you. They obviously are friends & you’re not even sure if she’s actually buying anything. Everyone in line is getting upset. Finally, it is your turn to be waited on. The cashier is rude to you & to make matters worse she keeps making mistakes on the register & starting over again!
How do you treat this cashier with Christ’s love?
LOVE IS PATIENT: To begin with you show patience by waiting in line quietly instead of complaining or leaving.
LOVE IS KIND AND IS NOT RUDE: You greet the cashier with a smile. Remember the old saying, “If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all.” If you can’t be kind at least you can refrain from being rude!
LOVE IS NOT SELF-SEEKING OR EASILY ANGERED: Do not be selfishly thinking about where you need to be (Maybe God has a reason for you to be there at that exact time. He has a different timeline than us & He knows things that we don’t!) Do not get mad right away because you are running late & the cashier is being rude to you!
LOVE KEEPS NO RECORDS OF WRONG: When the cashier is making mistakes while ringing you out you should not be thinking, “Strike 3! First you keep me waiting while you chat, then you give me attitude & are rude, and now you don’t even know how to run the register!” Keep hold of the patience that you were displaying earlier & ignore the mistakes instead of dwelling on them!
LOVE DOES NOT DELIGHT IN EVIL: Everyone else in line is getting upset. No doubt they are making comments & someone may even report her to a manager. You do not need to join in this behavior. Yes, the cashier is in the wrong, but there is no need to make a bad situation worse. Complaining or being loud & disruptive won’t make the line move faster & chances are it will make the cashier nervous causing her to move slowly & make more mistakes!
Congratulations! You have just displayed Christ’s love to the cashier and to the other customers in the store! Did you know the cashier? No. Do you love the cashier? No. But you still displayed love and acted in love and that makes God happy! So, it is possible to love everyone even strangers and enemies.
Now you know what love is really all about. God really loves you, you should love Him back, you can do that by being obedient to Him and loving others, even your enemies. If there are times when you feel like nobody loves you, just remember that God loved you so much that He created you just so that you could love Him back! No matter what mistakes that you make God will always love you and always forgive you. God is love!
So if you are finding yourself without a “valentine” this month just think about how you already have the greatest love of your life and He has already sent you a gift more wonderful than poems, or flowers, or chocolates…His only begotten Son, Jesus. (But it’s still nice to have chocolates too!)
Jenn Bathgate
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