Love Actually IsSample

Love is… patient, kind 

Love is demonstrated through your patience and kindness.

In 1 Corinthians 13:4, Paul says -

“Love suffers long and is kind…”

In his writings about the love of God, Paul points to love as being the more excellent way, and he says that it is something that we must pursue and follow through and go after. 

He describes to us how this love would express itself. How can we know that we are walking in love, that we are motivated by the love of God? First of all, love is patient and love is kind. Love is thoughtful, and does deeds of kindness for people.

Love is patient. This means you are willing to give others a long leash. It means you are being tolerant, you are being gentle, you are willing to accommodate others and extend grace to them. Patience and kindness go hand in hand, because being patient with people means that we do not retaliate but we do things that would bless them, things that would encourage and lift them up. We would speak words that would comfort and inspire them. In this way, we show kindness through our words and actions. 

So love is patient and love is kind. The expression of spiritual gifts, the doing of charitable deeds must all be prompted and accompanied by love which is patient and kind. When we are ministering spiritual gifts, the goal is not just to express or manifest that gift but the goal is to love the person first and then release that gift served with love, with kindness and with patience. The same thing applies when we are doing good deeds, when we are giving to the poor, or helping meet someone’s physical needs. The goal is not just to do good deeds but to wrap those acts of charity and generosity with love, patience and kindness. 

So whatever we do, it must be motivated by love. Love is being patient, love is being kind to those around us. We need to ask ourselves whether we are showing patience in the way we relate to people or in whatever we are doing. Are we showing kindness? Are we being understanding of their needs, their situations and struggles? Because love is patient, love is kind.

How would we like somebody to deal with us? What is the extent of patience and kindness we would like somebody to show to us? We need to extend that to those around us. 

Walk the more excellent way of love by walking in patience and kindness.

Prayer

Father, we pray that You would help us to be patient and to be kind as we deal with people, as we show them that we love them with the love of God. Thank you.

In Jesus’ name, Amen.