Romans 13 (The Message)

8-10 When you love others, you complete what the law has been after all along. The law code—don’t sleep with another person’s spouse, don’t take someone’s life, don’t take what isn’t yours, don’t always be wanting what you don’t have, and any other “don’t” you can think of—finally adds up to this: Love other people as well as you do yourself. You can’t go wrong when you love others. When you add up everything in the law code, the sum total is love.

Luckily for us the Bible defines love so clearly, we can stay out of the cultural ‘love’ traps, as the word gets tossed around and thrown into situations that make ‘love’ an ambiguous term. 1 Corinthians sums it up quite clearly. Praise God.

1 Corinthians 13 (The Message)

3-7 If I give everything I own to the poor and even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr, but I don’t love, I’ve gotten nowhere. So, no matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I’m bankrupt without love.

Love never gives up.

Love cares more for others than for self.

Love doesn’t want what it doesn’t have.

Love doesn’t strut,

Doesn’t have a swelled head,

Doesn’t force itself on others,

Isn’t always “me first,”

Doesn’t fly off the handle,

Doesn’t keep score of the sins of others,

Doesn’t revel when others grovel,

Takes pleasure in the flowering of truth,

Puts up with anything,

Trusts God always,

Always looks for the best,

Never looks back,

But keeps going to the end.

8-10 Love never dies. Inspired speech will be over some day; praying in tongues will end; understanding will reach its limit. We know only a portion of the truth, and what we say about God is always incomplete. But when the Complete arrives, our incompletes will be canceled.

Lord, teach me to love like you and to trust You to bring me to that place. 

Thank you for your unfailing love and blessings. You are my everything. Be my everything. In Jesus name we pray, Amen.

We had the opportunity to take a short 20 hour vacay. It was good… and I was still so happy and thankful to come home to the life God has blessed us with. Thanks mom and dad for playing!