Love Others

1 Peter 1:22-25

English Standard Version (ESV)

22 Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart, 23 since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God; 24 for

“All flesh is like grass
and all its glory like the flower of grass.
The grass withers,
    and the flower falls,

25 

but the word of the Lord remains forever.”

And this word is the good news that was preached to you.

(The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. Crossway Bibles, 2001. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=I+Peter+1%3A+22-25&version=ESV)

We have had a beautiful summer with all the rain that we have had!  Flowers bloomed, grass was green, and the trees flourished.  I enjoyed those days of little wind, pleasant temperatures, and the wonderful sunshine but the rain is what brought the beauty. 

In comparison let’s look at how we interact with other people.  Most of us like to be around people, sometimes we love the large crowds but many of us like the smaller intimate setting of just a few close friends.  Whatever the case may be, we enjoy people, but then, there is the occasional person that just continually annoys us.  The scriptures tell us that we must love them too!  In order to enjoy the beauty, we must love the rain.

All of us will pass on, go to our final resting place, or simply said, die.  While we are here we need to take in all the wonders that God has given us.  We need to remember that each person you see is a flower, a blade of grass, or a firmly planted tree but they all die.  We need to enjoy their beauty while they flourish.  I can only imagine what kind of place this world would be if we could all learn that lesson.  It is a lesson that no mankind has ever been able to learn.  God demonstrated it to us by sending His son, Jesus, to live on this earth, endure suffering, continue to love, love so much that He died on the cross for all of us!  What is even more spectacular is that He conquered death; that death that sins brings upon us, rising again on the third day, and now He is preparing a place for those who call upon His name.  Are you one of those?  If not, seek Him by calling on His name, tell Him you want to serve Him, love others, and someday live with Him eternally.

Seeking Him with all my heart,

Sheila