By Sheryl H. Boldt, www.TodayCanBeDifferent.net
Have you become a noisy gong? A clanging cymbal? You may have without realizing it.
1 Corinthians 13:1 (ESV) says, “If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.” How many of us want to be around a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal for any length of time? How often do we inflict our “loud” (thoughtless, unkind) behavior on others? Can we see ourselves in any of the following scenarios?
“Can’t you go any faster?” you practically scream at the slow-moving driver ahead of you.
Gong!
“I refuse to clap. I thought for sure I was going to win,” you think as you watch someone else take home the coveted award, position or whatever you’ve worked so hard for.
Clang!
“Did you hear about Denise? She’s back in rehab. She’s such a loser,” a coworker says to you, which begins a lively conversation that quickly spreads throughout the office.
Gong! Clang! Gong! Clang!
What is love? What’s the opposite of love? We’ve fended for ourselves for so long, looking out for number one, that we’ve gotten sidetracked. We’ve lost perspective on what living as a child of a loving God is supposed to look like.
But what would happen if we committed to obey God’s truth in this area? If we stopped letting our emotions control us and took responsibility for the way we behave?
Let’s live in light of how Scripture defines love. Let’s allow the Holy Spirit to search our hearts (and minds) and show us where we fall short.
If you visit the Today Can Be Different blog at www.TodayCanBeDifferent.net, you can read the posts as we discuss 1 Corinthians 13, one small segment at a time. As we discover how we’re to love those around us, I hope we’ll also more clearly appreciate our Heavenly Father’s heart.
Prayer:
Father, I pray that as we grow in our understanding of what real love is, it will become a beautiful sound in Your ears. Amen.
What about you? In what ways can you make your love sound better?
Sheryl H. Boldt is the author of the blog, www.TodayCanBeDifferent.net. You can reach her at [email protected].