Sunday Prayer Together 09.06.20

God, you have defined love as being patient, kind; not envious, not boastful, and not arrogant or rude. You have said that love does not insist on its own way, that it is not irritable or resentful, that it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but instead it rejoices in the truth. You have beautifully painted a portrait of love as bearing all things, believing all things, hoping all things, and enduring all things.

Lord, it it not our natural tendency to be patient or kind.  Often times we are envious, boastful, rude and arrogant.  Sadly, we do frequently insist on our own way, and, in all honesty, we can be irritable and rude, not to mention that we occasionally side with lies instead of favoring truth. And, full disclosure, we are not really fluent in hanging in there through all things, expecting the best in all all things, trusting beyond our vision in all things or in persevering through all things.

Father you have said that if we do not have love, we do not have anything.  You have assured us that if we have love we have everything, yet, if we do not have love, all that we have it of no value.  

Our human nature is to give love out sparingly, giving it only to those, and in those situations, where we are given back more than we give, refusing to give to those we do not agree with, those who follow our expectations, those we understand, those we tolerate, those we approve of, those we cannot see.  

Spectacularly, you have promised that Love Never Ends.

Sadly, here on earth, we can allow Hate to have an even more powerful and lasting impact.

We define love in selfish ways.  Love is a feeling, love can be withheld as an act of control and abuse, love is without cost or sacrifice, love is free.  The truth is, love is given freely, but it fully costs the giver everything.  Love requires sacrifice, selflessness, vulnerability, compromise, risk, and honesty.

God, remind us that Love is always a choice. Lord, may our lives be motivated by your call to love. Father, please nudge us in the direction of love in every moment of our lives.

God, may we always hold on to the fact that your Love has already been given freely to each of us.

Amen.