Devotion: Love, Forgiveness, and the Bond of Unity
“So, as those who have
been chosen of God,
holy and beloved,
put on a heart of
compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience;
bearing with one
another, and forgiving each other,
whoever has a
complaint against anyone;
just as the Lord
forgave you, so also should you.
Beyond all these
things
put on love,
which is the perfect
bond of unity.”
Colossians 3:12-14
Dear Father
in Heaven,
Before I
came to know You, my heart was filled with the things of my desires, my dreams,
and my pleasure. How thankful I am that all those selfish things are forgiven.
Help me now
to put on a heart like Yours, filled with humility that thinks of others before
myself. Mold my heart into a heart of compassion and kindness when I deal with
others – no matter how they deal with me. Give me an extra measure of
gentleness and patience to bear with those who try to pull me into selfishness
and anger and strife.
Today, I
pray You will give me the heart of forgiveness. Let my spirit be like Yours
when You forgave me, although I did not deserve it. Let all that I do and say
today be with the love You have given me. Let Your love be seen in my life
today and the rest of my days.
nor bear any grudge
against the sons of your people, but
you shall love your
neighbor
as yourself;
I am the LORD.”
Leviticus 19:18
Dear God, LORD of all,
Thank You for being the righteous Judge who sees all and
will provide retribution. However, when I am wronged, especially by a fellow
Christian, I am tempted to bear a grudge and think of some sort of vengeance. You
tell me that those grudges are contrary to my ability to love them. So today I
confess that area of my sinful heart and ask You to fill it instead with love! As I repent of that, I ask Your forgiveness.
I long for You alone to fill my heart, and ask You to reveal
to me all things that may remain hidden in my heart that is contrary to Your
will for me and hinders my ability to love. Forgive my arrogance in taking Your
place, because judgment and vengeance are Yours alone, not mine.
Thank You for lifting that heavy burden of a grudge. I know
You see all, and will provide retribution according to Your righteousness.
Click here to read more devotions. (Book coming soon!) Meanwhile, enjoy this collection of faith building true stories, including that of a little hummingbird I named Oscar.
Humans have long tried to explain
the meaning of love. There were cartoons
built around the statement “Love is…” with possible answers such as “coffee
with cream”… “a dog in the lap”…”an umbrella on a rainy day”…”a friend who
shares their cookie”…or as demonstrated here, “snuggling with a favorite
toy."
Snuggling with squeaky toy.
Our animal friends are good
examples. You may have heard the admonition tobe the kind of person that your dog thinks you are. That is pretty good advice. Our Schnauzer wants nothing more than to be
with us and to please to us. He is playful
when it is time to play. He is quiet,
and in his place at our feet, when it is time for that. He offers us his obedience and loyalty whether
we are in a good mood or bad, whether his bowl has dry dog food or a steak
bone, as his demonstration of unconditional love for us.
As a mom, I think of the time
before we even laid eyes on our son, yet we loved him. Motherhood, well, parenthood in general, is
like that. Our love is not based upon
appearance, or acts of kindness bestowed upon us, but simply the fact that they
exist. We give them a name linked to
ours, and teach them all we can, and watch them grow. We call it love.
I have friends whose children
were born with severely restricted physical or mental abilities. These parents have given their children every
bit of love, instruction, and care that we gave our son, and more. Much more.
Their responsibilities will last far longer than ours. They have given up careers, time with
friends, ability to go to social functions…and on and on. They do this out of a commitment we call
love.
I know of a family who had a
child with cerebral palsy who would be wheelchair bound, and very limited in
ability to care for himself for the rest of his life. Unexpectedly, they had a second child. This child was born without disabilities. Knowing they had limited financial ability,
time for caregiving, and could not properly care for both, they chose to allow
one child to be placed into an adoptive home - the healthy child - who would
have the best chance for being adopted. This way, they could give the first child the
very best they possibly could. That is a
sacrifice we call love.
I have family members who have gone
through long term illnesses that robbed them of mobility and memory. We walked them through it with a patience we
call love. We all have dealt with family
with mental illnesses that cause them to react with hatred, yet we show them
kindness in return. A kindness we call
love.
Once a popular movie declared “love
means never having to say you are sorry.”
Well, I’m sorry, but the opposite is true. If we somehow hurt someone, we should both be
sorry and express that regret. When we
put their feelings above our own, it is a humility we call love.
If you have read Kisses, From Katie, or her blog katiedavis.amazima.org you have
glimpsed into the eyes of sacrificial giving. This 18 year old high school homecoming queen left a home of privilege in
Tennessee to go on a mission trip to Uganda. There she completed her mission, and came home. But, God
wasn’t finished with her tender heart. She finished high school in the U.S. and
returned to this country filled with danger, poverty, disease and children with
nothing and no one. No one but her. She has adopted a number of the girls, but is
commonly called “Aunt Katie” in the region. She has become family. She left behind the good life, for a great
life. She exemplifies sacrificial
giving.
I recently had a new Christian
ask me “what is love?” My answer was
that love is willing to give all. Jesus
did that for us. He gave His very life
as payment for a debt He did not owe.
And He did it without any hope of being repaid. He simply did it out of love. So, having lived a little while, and having seen
these demonstrations of love, I offer to you that love is not what we get, but
what we give. Perhaps we could consider
giving love, regardless of whether we receive it in return. Maybe we could put the other person’s best
interest in higher regard than our own. What
if we gave love no matter how much they deserve it, based on their actions
toward us? Could we even give it to the point of sacrifice?
Father, we consider those who love without thought of whether they
receive anything in return, and our thoughts turn to Your example. You loved us before You laid the foundation
of the world. You planned and provided a
means by which we could be with You in spite the fact that we do not deserve
it. That plan caused You indescribable suffering
and punishment that You did not deserve.
No act of love here on earth has ever surpassed Your love for us.
Help us to love like You without thought of what we get in return. Let Your love so shine within us, that
everyone around us sees You, full of sacrifice, humility, kindness and commitment.
