LOVE series 3

THE 5  INGREDIENTS OF LOVE

1. Love is patient and Kind: 1cor 13:1-8

Love is not desperate. It does not rush. I have seen many people try to force love on themselves. They hit their heads on the wall, disparage their intergrity because of love. If you are forcing love on your self you are not truling exuding love. Your are only lusting after such a person. Love is a product of the spirit. It is gentle and kind, full of patience.

My friend told me ‘when you give something away and it still comes back to you. That thing is truly yours’ I also read a quote that ‘Love is like a butterfly, it eludes you when you try chasing it, but comes back to you when you are patient’. Love is not jealous, proud or conceited. Do you love that person? Then stop been desperate. Stop trying to force that relationship on yourself. Be patient, pray about it and it would come to you. Love is earned not amassed.

         2. Love keeps no wrongs: (vs6)

Love does not keep wrongs. It is not judgemental and critical. True love is forgiving. When you say you love somebody and you can’t easily forgive them when they wrong you, then you are only believing a lie. You must learn to realese yourself from that critical attitude that imbues you. You have to free your soul from that hate and unforgiving spirit if you must truly love. Because God is love and God keeps no records of our sins. He forgives us when we ask him to forgive us and instantly gives us a new beginning. "If ANY man BE IN Christ, he is a NEW creation; OLD things has past AWAY and all things have become NEW"

         3. Love is not happy with sin: ”(vs 7)

Some bible translation says “Love do not rejoice in iniquity but rejoices in the truth’. It is unfortunate that many people are wailing and rejoicing in sin in the name of love. Many younsters have been made to believe that a relationship is a place where you commit all sort of evil. In the name of love, many youths have fallen prey of premarital sex (so rampant today), abortion, unplanned pregnancy, masturbation, lust of the heart, lesbianism, gayism, pornographic viewing, rash words, lies, pretense, and evil passions(desires). These are by product of the flesh. Your can’t really love and you indulge in premarital sex. Then where is the sacredness of our body? True love does not condone evil. It thrieves only on what is just, pure, sacred and true.

You remember the story of Joseph the foster father of JESUS CHRIST? He really loved Mary. When he discovered Mary was pregnant, he quickly made plans to break up the relationship. It was when he had this in mind that  GOD warned him in a dream not to execute his plans. God told him that Mary had conceived by the Holy Spirit and that no man had slept with him. Joseph was swift to deal sternly with evil. Even while Mary was engage with mary, he never sinned. True love does not condone evil.

       4.   Love never gives up (7):

True love do not give up quickly on people. It wait in there a little longer. It is long suffering. It endures long enough. I have heard interesting stories of how many good mothers continued to hope and have faith that their child or children would turn a new leaf even though they are wayward now. Mothers are wonderful examples of this quality of love. Have you heard of the great saint called Augustine? According to the strory I garnered. Augustine grew up wayward. He was sturborn, and very disobedient. He smoked and did all kind of evil. He become popular because of his notoriety. All his friend left him, his father have given up on him long time ago.

But somebody decided to stand by his side. Guess who? His mother! She would  pray all day long asking GOD to change his son. Asking God to touch his heart. It grew worse. Augustine’s mother almost gave up. She spent everything on his son who did not want to change. But something told her to ‘endure some more’. She continue to interceed for his son in prayers. Then one day It happened like a magic. Augustine was changed! God arrested his heart and made him a great priest! 

After many years as he walked down his street, he saw his long time friends who he associated with. They came to him and said ‘Oh Augustine let go to party!’ but they were shocked at what he replied. Augustine shook his head and said ‘The Augustine you see today is not the Augustine you used to know”

I had learnt timeless lesson from that real life experience. Don’t give up on that person you have written off, hang in there! Endure some more. Pray some more. He might me the next Augustine God wants to use. I think the most useful quote I have ever read concerning this is “Before you give up on anybody, first ask GOD if He has given up on them’

5. Love is eternal: Love is eternal because is eternal. Love is consistent and persitent. It is everlasting. It is forevermore. We will continue to love until the day we draw our last breathe. Even at the other side we would continue again. So when you begin to love. There is no going back. GOD has commanded it and it would remain. GOD said ‘heaven and earth will pass away, but my words(commands) will never pass away”. Keep on loving because love is eternal.

 Gracias,

Be INSPIRED!

CYPRIAN HENRY

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