April 23rd - 1 Corinthians 13:1

1 Corinthians 13:1 I will never forget Sheila. She was in her early 70s when I first met her and, every Friday evening without fail, she helped out with her church’s youth club. The church was on a rough estate and the evenings were full of action. The young people were rarely appreciative and, at times, violent. The language they used was normally rude and often deeply offensive. And yet, Friday after Friday, Sheila would faithfully go and support the youth club with the hope that it might be a blessing to the young people and possibly even lead them closer to finding faith in Jesus. I only know one word that would explain why someone would act in that way – love. Sheila truly loved those young people and nothing would stop her seeking to help them. I’ve started with a personal example because we all know how to speak and sing about love, but the real test is whether we can turn our words into action. In this amazing chapter on love, Paul draws the picture of a person who seems to have collected every spiritual gift. This person is not just a great preacher but the best ever. Their knowledge has no limits and their prophetic gift is so great that they can unpick every mystery they face. On top of all of that they have faith that can move mountains around. To cap it all, their commitment to their faith is so complete that they don’t think twice about offering themselves as a martyr. What an amazing person! But Paul adds that even if all of those things are true of you, if you have no love then your life is just a lot of hot air. Love needs to take first place in our lives. Our God of love longs for us to reflect his love to the world. Question Who has shown you the most powerful example of love? Prayer God of love I worship you. Help me to reflect your love to those I meet today. Amen