But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
Galatians 5:22-23 (KJV)
Hello everyone, it's Valentine's week and I hope you are all feeling suitably mushy!
I'm going to continue where I left off yesterday by continuing to look at what love is to me so if this challenges some of your perceptions then good, I've gone and done my job.
Let's move onto the third part...
Goodness & Faith
We are almost through my series on what love means to me now so let's hit the ground running and look at how good your partners have been to you.
It's easy to remember and remind them of all the bad they have done and said, but why not challenge yourselves by first thinking of things that they have done or said that have really touched your emotions. We can be too quick to pull one another down and even God knew this would happen as He addresses it in Proverbs 15:1-2 through Solomon: -
A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger. The tongue of the wise useth knowledge aright: but the mouth of fools poureth out foolishness.
Isn't it ironic how we can be quick to judge, quick to speak when our partner or someone we care about makes a careless remark or does something stupid? Chances are they already know they are being careless or stupid so reminding them about it cannot do their spirits any good can it?
You can say that it's their fault because they did or said it, but the reality is that you didn't have to react the way that you did when, or after, it happened.
What needs to be happening instead is that we practice having faith in them that, even though they messed up, they will endeavour to put things right and as long as it is in their power to do so, you won't hold it against them and keep reminding them about it each time it happens in the future.
Why?
Forgiveness, that's why.
I already tackled that this year so if you need a reminder, have a look before you continue.
For it is in exercising forgiveness in someone's mistakes that we are showing that goodness that elevates the guilt and the shame the person could otherwise end up being left with if you keep reminding them about it.
Also, in forgiving them, we are reminding them and ourselves that God has forgiven each and every one of us by sending His Son to die on that cross over two thousand years ago. So as totally as He has forgiven us, we are teaching our worlds that they too are forgiven.
It's not easy, nobody ever said it was easy!
Final Thought
How do you think God might have felt when He saw His Son going to the cross; He had to turn away from the sixth to the ninth hour whilst that punishment worked itself out in full according to Luke 23:44 as just one example: -
And it was about the sixth hour, and there was a darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour.
Three hours!!!
At least three hours it took for the wrath of God to be fully abated upon His Son!
Isn't that worth showing your partner that you believe in their goodness and have faith in them too to become everything they have been called by God to be?
Peace!
===TLP===
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