Yesterday, Carl Baum taught on the first 4 verses of 1 Corinthians 13, a passage that is, for many of us, extremely familiar. You know--the "love" chapter--the one you've heard so many times that you might not be able to quote it from memory, but you do recognize it immediately when someone starts to read or recite it. I really enjoyed looking at this passage through fresh eyes, and one point that Carl made really hit home to me. In the first three verses of the chapter, Paul describes how, without love, our striving is, in effect, useless. Seems pretty simple, right? Love is sacrifice. We get it.
However, Carl made an interesting point that true love, agape love, is rescue love. Yes, it requires a sacrifice, but it also requires us to seek rescue for those around us, whether that is spiritual rescue for an unbeliever, emotional rescue for someone who is hurting, or physical rescue for someone who is in need. Tolerance isn't love, because tolerance merely leaves people with the same need of rescue.
After discussing rescue love, when he moved on to verse 4, Carl talked about how love is active. All the words which are translated as adjectives--patient, kind, not envious, not boasting, not proud--are actually verbs in the original Greek, he told us. In other words, love is doing, not feeling. (I have severely condensed the point of the sermon in these few paragraphs, but I encourage anyone who is interested to read the entire sermon here.)
Now, of course these are all ideas that I've heard/learned/read before, but I really appreciated how the Lord drew them all together and spoke to my heart during the sermon. As a result, I considered what I could be doing more of to show His love to others, and I believe He has already shown me a small way to begin.
When I returned from church, I noticed a lot of posts on Facebook discussing "Blue Monday" and how winter can be a depressing time for some people. Of course, in the usual social media way, the posts all encouraged people to copy and re-post to pass the message along. I know that people who post such things generally have good intentions, but I really didn't want to copy and paste the feel-good social media buzz-word-filled "I'm here for you" announcement. However, after prayer, I decided to write my own post this morning:
"I have several friends who have been posting in the last 24 hours about always being available and willing to talk if someone is needing a listening ear. These posts reference the idea of a "Blue Monday" and ask for others to copy and post the same to prove that someone is always listening. Unfortunately, in our world, I think that such a proof would be an impossible task, and I don't particularly like following social media trends myself.
"However, I do hope that anyone who knows me realizes that if you are in a place where you feel unheard, discouraged, or depressed, I truly am willing to listen. I may not be able to fix anything for you, but I know the One who is always present and able to move mountains. Together we can carry your burdens before His throne and remind one another of the truth of His unfailing love for us. My prayer is that all who need such encouragement will know that they can find a Friend in Him."
If anyone is reading this blog, please know that the same holds true for you--I am always willing to listen and pray with you. I'm not sure whether this post will help anyone, but I am glad that I took a small step toward offering love to people who need it. I know that I can't rescue others on my own, but I do hope that others will be reminded that I'm willing to go with them to the Great Rescuer.
If you are a child of the King, I challenge you to look for areas in your own life where you can share His rescue-love with the ones around you. Don't be afraid to start small, or to look silly; you can be confident that the Lord will open your eyes to ways to minister that will make an impact for eternity.
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