“Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not love, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not love, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not love, it profiteth me nothing. Love suffereth long, and is kind; love envieth not; love vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. Love never faileth,” 1 Corinthians 13:1-8.
Loving God and others is what life is really about. No matter who you are or what you do, it comes down to whether you’ll live a life of love or not. And there is a vast difference between the two. One is priceless, but one is meaningless.
Love is the most important ingredient to any meaningful relationship. It is fundamental to true significance. Your quality of life is directly tied to the amount of love flowing in you and through you to others. Though it’s often overlooked, love is infinitely more valuable than riches, fame or honor. They will pass away, but love remains. You can be fulfilled without these, but not without love.
The absence of love leaves a devastating void. When it is not present, your spirituality becomes superficial, your benevolent deeds self-centered and your sacrifices insincere. In any relationship where love is not your motivation, you can expect it to feel bland and unfulfilling—if not meaningless. When asked to identify life’s greatest command, Jesus summed it up this way: Love God with all you are and to love your neighbor as yourself. Will you embrace a life of love?
Pray this Thanksgiving week, and request this of God: ‘Lord, teach me what real love is, and make me a loving person.’
God is looking at you each day to see if you will love the way He has loved us and gave His life for us. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved,” John 3:16-17.
