Love is patient, love is kind.....

1 Corinthians 13:4-7


“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices in truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.”

This is probably one of the most well known verses in the bible, known by both Christians and non-Christians alike. I think a lot of the time this verse does not receive as much emotional weight as it deserves. I mean, I think everyone I know, including myself, automatically thinks of a romantic sort of love when they think of this verse. We imagine a man and a woman standing at an alter staring googly-eyed into each other’s faces as a priest recites these words just minutes before the two lovers are joined as one and prance off merrily to begin their fairytale life together. Though I do believe this verse is relevant to married couples, I think that it has a much bigger meaning before that. 1 John 4:16 states that “God IS love.” This brings a whole new meaning to this verse to me, personally. It shows me JUST HOW AWESOME God is. Since God IS love, I like to replace the word “love” with the word “God”. So, GOD is patient, GOD is kind. He does not envy, he does not boast, he is not proud. He is not rude, he is not self-seeking, he is not easily angered, he keeps no record of wrongs. God does not delight in evil but rejoices in truth. He always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. How comforting does that verse become when we stop focusing it so much on earthly love, but on who God really is??? I mean, think about it. HE IS THE GOD OF THE UNIVERSE. Yet he doesn’t boast? He is not proud? How crazy is that. And I am simply one measly little person in this entire universe who he could snuff out at any second with one wisp of his hand, I am so thankful that despite how much pain I probably put God through as I sin and mess up time after time, he is not easily angered and that he keeps no records of my wrongs and that he continues to protect me, to trust me, and to have hope in me. Then the greatest promise of the whole verse: he always perseveres. God will persevere over my troubles, over this world, over sin, and ultimately over Satan. What an amazing concept.