1 Corinthians 13:7 says, "Beareth all things believeth all things hopeth all things endureth all things" in reference to charity or love (agapao love), which roughly means that love protects, trusts in (or has faith in), trusts with (or confides in) and persevers.
I find this line very hard to execute. Living in a society that is suspicious of strangers and random acts of kindness, where love is a distorted image of itself, it is very easy to be swayed these things and not remember to truely love.
I see this kind of love offering two things, defense and vulnerability. Sticking up for friends during bad times and being truely open to someone seeing the good and bad inside; it's a very hard thing to do. It demands a sort of selflessness that is very difficult given our old nature's lean towards the selfish. It makes us put ourselves out there, not just the good parts or the parts we have gotten over, but the parts that we wrestle with, offering a kind of ammunition to the next person for them to hurt us. Man, that's difficult.
What do you think that verse means and how do you go about executing it?
Comments (1)
I take it to mean that we should go into all relationships with an open heart. It is certainly hard to do with some people, but there will be rewarding relationships. Plus you can get hurt from others even if you go into a relationship not abiding to this verse.
I've found that there are some people who don't understand why I enjoy random acts of kindness, or why I'm always willing to help someone. But there are others that are woken up by this kind of relationship. I like to think that someday I'll meet someone like me, and it will be in a moment that I need to be reminded how to act, and that person will be my saving grace for that moment.
And think how many lives you can change with kindness and a changed heart. Kind words make a difference, and even more so are daily kind words to somebody. A relationship like the one described in this verse can cause people to smile, or it can help motivate someone to live.
This kind of love does make us put ourselves out there. But if you don't put yourself out there then what is accomplished? Who really knows you? Who will you change for the better if you don't do this? Who will be impacted because of how you live (in a good way)?