Day 14: Trust Love

Day 14: Trust Love
Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends (1 Corinthians 13:4–8a, ESV).
What does real love look like? The Apostle Paul tells us…
“Love is patient.” It waits for people to change. It’s long-tempered. It accepts people as they are, not as we want them to be.
Love is “kind.” This doesn’t mean passive perseverance but active goodness. Not just passively accepting people but actively accepting people. Not just standing on the other side of the room, thinking, I can’t stand that person and I’m going to stand clear of her, but actually going across the room and finding ways to engage or embrace that person. Love looks for ways to express acceptance to people whom we might otherwise be critical towards.
“Love does not envy or boast.” Love is not jealous. Even when those around us seem to prosper and succeed more than we do, love isn’t jealous.  Love does say; “I am happy for your successes and will not let jealousy distort my love for you,” and “I am for you. I have always been for you, and I will always be for you.”  Love says I want the best for you.
Love “is not arrogant or rude.” Love chooses not to make another feel uncomfortable by boasting about personal success or highlighting your own life in a way that would embarrass or belittle a friend.
Love is accepting. “Love bears all things, believes all things.” Love bears the weight of misunderstanding and defends the heart of the other. Love gives the other the benefit of the doubt.  
Love always believes the best about people. “Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things.” Love sees people not as they are, but as they will be someday.  
Love “endures all things.” Endure is to continue to exist; to last.  Love does that. Love won’t retreat or back away. Love will be there for the other person and will be there in the end.  
“Love never ends.” Love will never fail to accomplish God’s highest and best purposes. If a relationship unravels, it wasn’t because of love. Love always takes things to a better place. If you love others wholeheartedly and embrace the people in your life as they are,

even when they hurt you, God will use that. Love never fails—not at home, at work, or in the church. That’s an absolute, condition-free guarantee: “Love never ends.”
I just don’t want people to “Love”…I want people to “Love Well!”

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