Prayer For Love

I can’t begin to imagine a world without love. I’ve been loved since I was born. I’ve learned the deep and strong bond of love in a world where love often seems cheap and shallow. I am still learning about love from the Author of Love – God.

I will be the first to admit that I have met people that are hard to love. When people act like a jerk or treat me hatefully or harshly – it sets me back. I can’t always see through the “jerk behavior” to see a hurting or wounded heart that still needs me to love them.  When I choose to love someone else, they really can’t “make me” not love them. It’s totally my choice as to whom I love.

Paul prayed this really cool prayer for love over the church at Thessalonica. I want to pray it over others as I begin my day today. Check this out….

¹¹ May God our Father and our Lord Jesus bring us to you very soon. ¹² And may the Lord make your love for one another and for all people grow and overflow, just as our love for you overflows. ¹³ May he, as a result, make your hearts strong, blameless, and holy as you stand before God our Father when our Lord Jesus comes again with all his holy people. Amen. (1 Thessalonians 3:11-13 NLT)

I want my love for God to grow wider and deeper.

I want my love for others to grow wider and deeper.

I want my heart to grow strong, blameless, and holy before the Lord.

I want the Lord to keep shaping my heart and expanding my heart to be able to love deeper and to love more people – even the “hard to love people”. The enemy wants me to hate and tear down, but the Lord wants me to love and build up. It’s not easy to love “hard to love people”, but it’s also not optional for Christ followers. After all, He loved me first and I probably fit that “hard to love” description at times. I’m so thankful that He didn’t give up on me because I was hard to love.

Pressing On!

Dwayne