Good morning…
During our Listening Group yesterday, we placed our base on this truth: God is love (1 John 4:8b). God is patient. God is kind. God does not envy. He does not boast, is not proud. God does not dishonor others, is not self-seeking. He is not easily angered and keeps no record of wrongs. God does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. God always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. God never fails (adapted from 1 Corinthians 13:4-8a). And we love because he first loved us (1 John 4:19).
Since it was Ash Wednesday, we talked about what we were giving up for Lent. A new inspiration came. Grounded in God’s unshakable love, might we each commit ourselves daily to pondering these revealing questions?
“Today, have I been patient?”
“Have I been kind?”
“Was I envious, boastful, or proud?”
“In what ways have I dishonored others, seeking to control things myself?”
“When was I easily angered?”
“With whom am I keeping a record of wrongs?”
“Do I delight when evil happens to someone who has hurt me?”
“Am I finding joy in life’s hard truth?”
“Resting on God’s love, do I feel protected, trusting and hopeful, full of perseverance?”
This Lent, we agreed it would be easier to give up Diet Coke than to shed our impatience and our unkind thoughts. It would be easier to fast from meat than to give up our envy, our pride, and our controlling nature. It would be easier to give up alcohol than to let go of our anger and our long list of resentments. It would be easier to give up chocolate than to stop wishing evil on people who hurt us and to let go of our negative attitude. It would be easier to fast from TV than to shed our self-protective shell and our incessant worry, our sense of hopelessness and our urge to give up.
This Lenten season, as we place our base daily on God’s “shaking stand” of unfailing love, we are saying “YES” to Jesus’ invitation: “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another” (John 13:34-35).
This Lent might we watch God at work, shaking away our sinful nature, teaching us to love one another as Christ loves us? After our season of shaking, three things will last forever – faith, hope, and love – and the greatest of these is love (1 Corinthians 13:13, NLT).
…Sue…
