Love is patient and kind…
1 Corinthians 13:4

Hold it right there! Not even halfway through the first verse of this chapter, and I have to stop and think.

God has called me to love others. This whole chapter explains what He has in mind when He talks about love, and I find myself having to pause and consider after the first phrase.

Patient? Kind? Am I?

How do I show patience? How do I show kindness? It’s not a matter of feeling but of how I behave toward other people. I’m supposed to treat others with the same patience and kindness that God has shown me.

Lord, I fall so short, even of this minimal definition of Your idea of love. Thank You that You are still being patient and kind and forgiving me here. Oh, Lord, change the way I relate with the people around me. Let my treatment of others be characterized by patience and kindness, today. Amen.

Pastor Dan Giles