Saturday, February 12, 2011

Love is

Peter is patient, Peter is kind. He does not envy, he does not boast, he is not proud. He does not dishonor others, he is not self-seeking, he is not easily angered, he keeps no record of wrongs. Peter does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. Peter always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Peter never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away....

I bumped into a friend at a bus station on the way home tonight who had just come from a church service where the pastor said to substitute the word "love" with your name from 1 Corinthians 13. Now at this time my bus had finally arrived (after waiting 25 minutes) so I didn't catch the rest of his story. Which means I get the fun at trying to guess at where he was going with it, or at least come up with my own thoughts without sounding too sacrilegious.

It is simply that no matter how hard we try, we can never attain these characteristics consistently, we will almost always fail. But we should still try. Why, you ask? What's the point? Well, I like the way Simon Sinek puts it: "There are leaders and there are those who lead. Leaders hold a position of power or authority, but those who lead inspire us. Whether they're individuals or organizations, we follow those who lead not because we have to but because we want to." (How great leaders inspire action, TED Talk)

Scripture is inspiring. It's inspiring to know that perfection exists, and although I will not achieve it in this lifetime, it's also inspiring to know where that perfection comes from. One can read the bible and see a list of rules. I read it and see eureka.

It's also appropriate that with Valentines Day just around the corner, this age-old question of what love is can be resurfaced.

And now these three remain: faith, hope and Peter. But the greatest of these is Peter.

Sometimes substituting words is just fun...ny

2 comments:

  1. I think putting your name in can help remind you that YOU need to apply the verse, not just think of it as a general rule... that was my first thought when reading it that way, anyway. :)

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