1 Corinthians 13:1

If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.

I will never forget Sheila. She was in her early 70s when I first met her, and every Friday evening, without fail, she helped out with her church’s youth club. The church was on a rough housing estate and the evenings were full of action. The young people were rarely appreciative and at times violent. The language they used was normally rude and often deeply offensive. I could go on, but I am clearly not describing a relaxing evening, to put it mildly! And yet, Friday after Friday, Sheila would faithfully go and support the youth club with the hope that it might be a blessing to the young people and possibly even lead them closer to finding faith in Jesus. I only know one word that would explain why someone would act in that way: love. Sheila truly loved those young people and nothing would stop her seeking to help them.

I’ve started with a personal example because we all know how to speak and sing about love, but the real test is whether we can turn our words into action. In this amazing chapter on love, Paul draws the picture of a person who seems to have collected every spiritual gift, and yet without love they are completely lost. Just a lot of hot air.

The only conclusion that you can draw from this is that love needs to take the first place in our lives.

Question

Who has shown you the most powerful example of love?

Prayer

God of love, I worship You. Help me to reflect Your love to those I meet today. Amen