To Love Long | Qualities of Women Who Trust Jesus
“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.” —1 Corinthians 13:4-8
Anyone who grew up with siblings knows first-hand how unloving kids can be.
Siblings can be downright cruel toward each other. You know exactly how true this is if you’re raising kids anywhere between the toddler stage and the middle school years. Scratching, biting, spitting out hurtful words at each other (also literally spitting on each other)— kids know precisely how to enrage their siblings and push their parents to the limits of sanity. [Side Note: Proverbs 12:18 is a great one to have them memorize in this stage.]
It never ceases to amaze me that we don’t have to teach kids to be rude. Or to be self-seeking. Or to keep track of all the wrong things done against them. All of that comes very naturally.
Teaching them how to love is a completely different story. Doesn’t come so naturally. Just like it takes a crazy amount of patience to teach them how to be patient, it takes a crazy amount of love on our part to teach them how to love.
Parenting is a joyful journey, absolutely. But it’s also a brutal process of repeating ourselves day after day, correcting the same behavior, breaking up the same fights, enduring the same mess, and feeling like there’s not much progress to show for it.
In 1 Corinthians 13, the apostle Paul penned one of the world’s most famous literary passages on the topic of love. The poetic climax of verse 4 stands in stark opposition to our fast-paced, instant gratification, hurried days:
Love is patient.
So opposite of how siblings act with each other. So opposite of how we act in our rushed messes. In describing love this way, Paul is describing the very character of God. Patient is the way God loves us. We, very naturally, are rude to the people around us. We’re self-seeking. We’re pros at keeping track of the wrongs done against us. Yet God is so very patient with us.
To love this way is to have the end goal in mind, to be slow to anger. To love this way is to be of long spirit, unfazed by the discouraging realities of the present. God loves us through our dusty “under construction” phases when we’re in the process of developing but not yet fully mature. He gives us space to grow, persevering until He finishes the work He’s begun in us.
He has the most endearing, pride-melting ability to love long. To love with a long-suffering, in-it-for-the-long-haul determination that exhibits endless patience for our slow maturing process.
To the extent that we accept this love, we will also give it. In other words, when we grab hold of this reality, that God’s love suffers long for us, our hearts are molded into a different shape. One that makes us capable of loving with the same sense of long-suffering, endurance, and patience.
Remember just how deep and unhurried God’s love is for you, Sister. We are women who’s longings to be loved are abundantly fulfilled, and we are women who are learning to love long.
For Your Journal
Find It:
In this portion of your journal, write out a Bible verse. You can find a verse that fits a current life situation or use the one we used in today’s devotion.
“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.” —1 Corinthians 13:4-8
Fix It:
In this portion of your journal, pull out a few key words from the verse you chose above, or summarize the verse in your own words. Write it in pretty lettering or sketch something that will help you visualize the meaning of the verse and fix it in your mind. Repeat these words to yourself throughout the week to remind you of the truth contained in the scripture. Here are some options:
Love is patient with me
Love Long
Feel It:
In this portion of your journal, write out a prayer. The goal is to absorb the meaning of the Bible passage and let it take root in your heart. Ask the Lord to let his word change you by the power of his Spirit so that you begin to feel like the new person you’re becoming in Christ. Surrender any areas of your life that you are trying to control.
Lord, your love is amazing. The more I learn of its attributes, the more I marvel at who you are. Thank you for being patient with me as I grow. Please fill me with the same sense of patience as I try to love the people around me. Help me to love long— not rushing others to grow faster than they’re capable of, but to be unhurried, slow-to-anger, and certain that you’ll complete the work you’ve begun in the them. Fill me with your Spirit until I feel you doing this transformative work in my heart. I love you, Lord, and I love your ways. In your Name, Amen.