All You Need Is Love

I have a devotion book I absolutely love. And here’s why I love it:

• It’s not dated so if (I mean, when) I miss a day or two or five, the date doesn’t glare back, sneering at me for missing so many days. 
• Each page includes a scripture, relatable, real life application, PLUS it ends with a prayer. All inclusive. That’s how I roll. 
• And, perhaps even better than both of those, my mother in law gave it to me. 

It’s called “Today, God Wants You to Know.” As I was getting ready the other morning, I began reading while I was brushing my teeth. The title happened to be, “Today God Wants You to Know the Beauty of Putting Someone Else First.” Sometimes when I read the title for my devotion that day, I think it will have no effect on me…won’t pertain to me, won’t be something I need. But then, I read it. And 9 times out of 10 (or 9.99!), it always does…and this one was no different. I thought to myself, “I don’t have trouble putting others first.”

The verse was Romans 12:9-10 “Love from the center of who you are; don’t fake it. Run for dear life from evil; hold on for dear life to good. Be good friends who love deeply; practice playing second fiddle.” Then, about halfway through the application part, I read “God says we sin against Him when we pretend to love others but dislike them. Instead, we are called to genuine love.” So what exactly is “genuine love?” The site www.unlockingthebible.org describes ‘genuine love’ as having these characteristics: patience, generosity, humility, courtesy, restraint, joy and consistency. Well…I’ve definitely got some work to do!

Perhaps you are in a similar situation as myself and find genuine love to be a struggle for you with a certain person. For me, that person is my brother. We aren’t close and never have been. As awful as it sounds, there isn’t a lot of love there either. This devotion hit me in just the right place that I couldn’t move the bookmark. Sometimes, I stay on the same page for days because the message is so real, so pertinent, I need to soak it up more than once (another reason I don’t like dated devotions!). While I immediately thought of my brother when I read this passage, I get stuck with HOW? How in the world do I get past the past (and sometimes even the present) to move forward? How in the world do I accept things as they are, accept him for who he is, who God made him to be? How in the world do I love genuinely?! Oftentimes, I am just not sure I can. But then of course, I know I can because I have God. I have God to lean on. I have God to ask for help. And I have prayer. I have all these “tools” at my fingertips. I just need to use them.

If you missed Dan’s sermon last Sunday, check it out. Is there someone in your life you have “bad blood” with? Is there someone in your life you need to genuinely love? That’s a yes and a yes for me. I don’t know exactly what it’s going to look like, but I’m sure it’s going to be messy for me along the way.

And that’s okay…I’ve got to start somewhere!

Ladies, let’s get out there and start baby stepping our way to some genuine love!

Julie