Monday
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.
New International Version
THOUGHTS ABOUT TODAY'S VERSE ...
Love does not focus on me, but on others. Each of these qualities of love is based upon an affectionate, compassionate, and forgiving attitude that regards others of value and not just self. No wonder the old saying goes "The middle of sIn is a big I!"
MY PRAYER …
Holy God and Sacrificial Father, teach me to notice others and value them just as you do. I know you loved me when I was not lovable, and redeemed me when I was not worthy. Help me to take my eyes off myself and see others as you see them. Through Jesus I pray. Amen.
Tuesday
Love does not delight in evil, but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
New International Version
THOUGHTS ABOUT TODAY'S VERSE ...
Always love – pretty tall order and pretty tough stuff. Only God is "always." But then Christians are fueled to a always love through the Holy Spirit! Check out the promised source of "always" love in Romans 5:5.
MY PRAYER ...
Sweet and Glorious God on High, I humble myself before you, recognizing your boundless power to love, the incredible need for love in the lives of those around me, and my limited ability to love. Please pour your Holy Spirit into my heart and fill me with the power to love as you do, always. In Jesus' sweet name I pray. Amen.
Wednesday
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
New International Version
THOUGHTS ABOUT TODAY'S VERSE ...
Did you know the Bible doesn't just say, "God loves you?" Now don't let me confuse you, it does say God loves us many times, but each time it does, it shows us that love as well. God loved us so much time he didn't just say I love you with a valentine, he showed he loved us by sending his Son!
MY PRAYER ...
Loving and almighty God, thank you for loving me. Thank you for both saying it and showing it. Please know, dear Father, I love you, too! Accept my words and actions today as a testimony to my love. Through Jesus I pray. Amen.
Thursday
A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you , so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.
New International Version
THOUGHTS ABOUT TODAY'S VERSE ...
How do you recognize Jesus' followers? How do you find Christians? Jesus said they love each other just as he loved the disciples. In the immediate context, this means he is willing to give sacrificially and extravagantly by dying for them on the cross, and he is also willing to love selflessly and practically by washing their feet. His ministry reveals he also will do almost anything in between extravagant and practical. Imagine if we all read the Gospels, and committed to love each other in the same way Jesus showed his love to his disciples!
MY PRAYER ...
Father of Compassion and God of all grace, I thank you for teaching me to love through the example of Jesus. May my words and actions reflect some resemblance of his love toward your people today. Through Christ, my Great Example, I pray. Amen.
Friday
This is love: not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.
New International Version
THOUGHTS ABOUT TODAY'S VERSE ...
He loved us first! He offered his Son to save us regardless of our decision to believe or ignore his grace. We are given the ability to accept or reject the death of his Son as the sacrifice for our sins. The only condition, as 1 John 2:1-2 emphasizes, is that we realize that he died for everyone else in the world, too!
MY PRAYER ...
Precious King, God Almighty, why you should love me and send Jesus to die for me I will never fully understand. Thank you for your love. Thank you for your sacrifice for my sins. Thank you, Jesus, for coming to save me. I pray in your name and by your intercession. Amen.
Saturday
This is the message you heard from the beginning: We should love one another.
New International Version
THOUGHTS ABOUT TODAY'S VERSE ...
The original message – love one another. The enduring message – love one another. The most convicting message – love one another. The most difficult message – love one another. I'm reminded of the little verse: To dwell above with saints we love, O that will be glory. But to dwell below with saints we know, now that's another story. But it's the story we're called to write!
MY PRAYER ...
Loving Father, I commit to you that I will intentionally show my love for your children this week in what I do and say. I do this, trusting your grace to empower me to do more than I would do on my own. Through Jesus my Savior I pray. Amen.
Sunday
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or sword? No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.
New International Version
THOUGHTS ABOUT TODAY'S VERSE ...
Conquerors! We win!! When you open up the final book of the Bible, Revelation, that is the message – Christians win because Jesus is the one true conqueror. No matter how the battle is going for you right now, remember that in the end, we win!
MY PRAYER ...
El Shaddai, God Almighty, thank you for securing the ultimate victory for me by raising Jesus from the dead. I know he is coming with victory on the day you have determined, but I pray that I may live victoriously for you until that day. Through Jesus my conquering King I pray. Amen.