As I have written before about Romans 8, sometimes a passage in the Bible which seems overused and tired comes to life again in a fresh light. This has been the case with 1 Corinthians 13—the famous love chapter, which the elders of Cornerstone have decided to study individually and apply to their lives. I don’t get very far substituting my name for love (Ted is patient, Ted is kind) before I realize I have failed in every one of these areas.
For example, “Love always protects.” The other night I was in bed and Lucibeth wanted me to come out to the car with her (in the dark) to look for something. I (very reluctantly) got out of bed to go with her, realizing even as I went that the attitude of love is as important as the action of love. Not only was I being self-seeking by wanting to stay in bed, but I was only reluctantly protecting, rather than cherishing to do so. And I also sought to explain away my sin in my mind by believing that there is no real threat in our neighborhood anyway.
The good part about this exercise with the elders is that it exposed the sinfulness of my heart and gave me an opportunity to repent. Lord, forgive me and help me; help me to be so tender toward Lucibeth, help me to so cherish her that I would delight to offer her protection before she even thinks of her need.
And forgive me Lord that I allow parts of your Word to feel ‘tired’ to me, and I may not look at these parts for years as a result. Thank you that the very fact that these passages come back to life to me and jump off the page testifies to the supernatural nature of this Book.
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