Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
"Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another" (1 John 4:11).
Some husbands buy flowers for their beloved wives, and others take time to do the dishes. Some fathers bring a favorite gift home for their children, and others take a day off from work to just spend time with them. Some mothers have dinner waiting on the dinner table, and others hide notes of appreciation or affirmation in their husband's office for him to uncover.
We are to love one another, and while there are hundreds, maybe thousands, of ways to show your love to another, one of them is above all the others.
The problem is, it involves a bit more than just stopping by the florist on the way home and dropping $20.
What is the greatest way for another to know real love? It doesn't come after a fresh haircut, or when your children have made you proud to be their father or mother. It doesn't come when they've earned anything.
The highest form of love is shown when your spouse, your children, or anyone else for that matter, DOESN'T DESERVE IT. When your children are having "one of those days," or your spouse is stressed out by the pressures of work and treating you like it. Rejoice! For that is the time for he or she to be shown real love. Why? Because they don't deserve it, and yet, you'll shower them with the undeserved love known only in Christ.
John says that if you don't know God, you don't know love (1 John 4:8). But we do know God, and we know His great love for us revealed in His Son. This was a love given despite our ability to earn anything. For while we were yet sinners Christ came to die--He didn't wait until we were having a good day!
It's not easy, and it's not the typical way of working. Try to give thanks to God when your spouse or children give you an opportunity to show them real love. It will amaze them, just as Christ's love amazes you.
Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound. Amen.
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