Father, Teach Us How to Love 

Have you become a noisy gong or 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 spend time with a noisy gong? Even a minute of this obtrusive noise would make us want to run away. Think how it would affect us if we had to be around a clanging cymbal constantly throughout our week.

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 take home the coveted award or position 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 which sparks a lively conversation that quickly spreads through the office.

Gong! Clang! Gong! Clang!

This is the opposite of what love sounds like. How have we allowed our thoughtlessness to lead us to behave in such unloving ways? Perhaps 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 “sound” like.

Suppose we resolve to make our love sound better.

What if we commit to obey God’s truth and stop letting our emotions control us? What would happen if we finally took responsibility for the way we behave?

Is it possible in the new year to love the way Scripture defines love? Yes!

If we allow the Holy Spirit to search our hearts and minds, He’ll show us where we fall short and enable us to love in a way that honors Him. For the next several weeks, we’ll discuss 1 Corinthians 13. As we discover how we’re called to love those around us, perhaps we’ll also get a clearer glimpse of our Heavenly Father’s heart for others – and for us.

Let’s pray:

Father, teach us how to love. Help us choose to love others even when our emotions tell us to do otherwise. I pray that as we grow in our understanding of what real love is, our behavior toward others will become a beautiful sound in Your ears. Amen.

What about you?

I’d love to hear your thoughts about this post. (Others might also benefit from your comment.)

• Have you become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal? 
• Would studying and applying the Love Chapter help you to live in such a way that will make your love “sound” better?