Then..... there are "those" days... I'm pretty sure my "love tank has a leak, and it is nearly dehydrated"
Rusty
Dusty
Dirt
Dried Up
Evaporated (and basically any other word from Webster Thesaurus of words to chose from)
Love is not always easy.
No lie.
No joke.
We've all met people that try their darnedest to NOT be lovable. I mean, what the heck? Why would you want to be unloveable? Who doesn't love a fuzzy puppy? A smile from a friend? A smile from a stranger? The smell of a freshly bathed baby? The hug from a child, who just loves giving hugs away for free. No strings attached?
We were made to crave love. God is LOVE. We were made by Him. Simple. Easy-peasy right? Ya think?
If only it were that simple easy-peasy, life would be all sunshine, no sunburn. Chocolate, no calories, spring, no sneezing, ocean, no sand in your pants chaffing the hide off your.. well, you get the picture.
I just happened on a verse that was so familiar to me, I read through it very quickly and followed with... yeah, yeah, yeah, I know... the love chapter... ok... I know this one... I did, after all MEMORIZE this verse in college for a New Testament class. 1 Cor. 13:1-13 It's a long chapter. Just sayin' .
Back then, it was just "words" to memorize for a test. A pretty hard test at that. Our professor took points off for comma's not being in the correct place. Did you put a semi-colon or a period?(at 18, I thought the world was made up of unjust professors with nit picky rules) Now, I look back and think; suck it up and get over yourself. I was so hung up on my lack of punctuation skills, I made the words, just words in-between punctuation. My result.... I think I made a C on the test. Geez. This should have been my first clue, that I was clueless on the "real" meaning of LOVE.
This morning I wrote this verse in my journal. I tried to be very meticulous about my commas and periods. Then I stopped.
Looked again. And wrote down the verses without a thought or a care in the world about punctuation.
I LOOKED at the words...
I love the NCV version of the bible.
1 Cor. 13:4-5
4.Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous, it does not brag and it's not proud. 5.Love is not rude, is not selfish, and does not get upset with others. Love does not count up wrongs that have been done.
( that was just verse 4 & 5, and my freshly manicured toes are smashed.)
That my friend, is two verses of what Love is not and what Love is. It's an eye opening sharp reminder that it is NOT about us.
I'm sure you can think of several people who proclaim to be christians, and do not resemble anything of verses 4 & 5. Me too.
But, that's not my job.
My job, is to look at Suzanne. Because, I fail miserably at many of those. I am thankful beyond belief that God's grace and mercy covers me completely!
"Loving others" should never be about how much love they show me first or in return.
Love is about serving folks.
How can I make your day better?
Do you need help with that?
Count to 10 before reacting. Really, count to 10, maybe 20.
Let me take your buggy back to the store for you.
Pay it forward in line at the Chick-fila.
Complement someone today.
Smile. (it doesn't cost a thing)
Say the magic word- Thank You. (also free)
Give things you thought about returning to the store to someone who might need it.
Mow a yard
Loan things that you never expect to get back. It's okay. It's just stuff.
Pat a back,
Send a note of appreciation, encouragement or thanks for just being "real" to someone. Like a real honest to goodness note. Paper and a pen. Envelope with an actual stamp. It shows you went the extra mile on the effort scale of life.
Say, I'm sorry.
Forgive someone.
Wave at the "Jesus" man standing on the corner of Worth and Fayetteville. It encourages him. :-)
If someone drops something, PICK IT UP and give it to them.
Call you mom. She loves to hear your voice.
Find ways to love and you will be filled to rim of your love tank!!
Plus, it makes you happy. I like happy. :-)
