"...the greatest of these is love." 1 Corinthians 13:13
Mark Buchanan, a fellow Canadian Baptist pastor and author shared in a sermon that a group of children were once asked, "What does 'love' mean?"
Here are some sample answers:
- Rebekah, 8, said, "When my grandmother got arthritis, she couldn't bend over and paint her toenails anymore. So my grandfather does it for her all the time—even when his hands got arthritis, too. That's love."
- Billy, 4, said, "When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different. You just know that your name is safe in their mouth."
- Nikka, 6, says, "If you want to learn to love better, you should start with someone you hate."
- Tommy, 6, says, "Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well."
- Jessica, 8, says, "You really shouldn't say 'I love you' unless you mean it. But if you mean it, you should say it a lot."
- Bobby, 7, says, "Love is what's in the room at Christmas, if you stop opening presents and listen."
A baseline statement for Christmas is that it is a time for love. The bible speaks of this: "God so loved the world..." (John 3:16) "God demonstrates his love..." (Romans 5:8) "...how deep his love is." (Ephesians 3:18)
The challenge is to flesh out God's greatest act of love. We must move from sentimentality to transformational relationships with others. Will we express love to others in profound and meaningful ways because the love story of Christmas has worked it's way deep down into our souls?
Tomorrow I will talk about what ways we can express God's love in ways that make sense. Let's call them "love gifts."
Prayer: "Lord Jesus, give us the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep your love is."
Gift to others: Think about a person who needs to hear you say their name in a loving way. Then go speak to him or her.
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