4Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
8Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. ~ 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 (NIV)
Hello my friends, and welcome to this week’s Prayers for the Week post. This past Tuesday my wife Cindy and I celebrated our 15th wedding anniversary, and I got to thinking a bit about all that has happened to us in the past several months. In April, Cindy lost her Uncle Ted; in early June, her Uncle Sam left us; then, when we got home from that funeral, we lost our dog Regan; last month, Cindy’s Uncle Walter passed away. It’s been one struggle after another, and it isn’t done yet, not by a long shot. However, in the midst of all of that, the overwhelming emotion that we are experiencing in all of our trials and tribulations is Love. The picture above is of a plaque on my wall in my office, a plaque that my friend Sally gave me several years back. I think of her often as I look at it, but I realized that I’ve never taken a shot of it before now. On this plaque, in sixteen simple words, is such promise, such hope. The author of Corinthians is absolutely correct, Love never fails. I hope you have the kind of love I have, the love I have for my wife, and the love I have for my Lord. I am a blessed man, and today, I see that more and more.
Life is short, in the blink of an eye it is gone, and the overwhelming things that last with us are the things that revolve around our loved ones. Tell them you love them, tell them you’re there for them, each and every day of your life. Now, please pray with us the prayer that Jesus taught us to pray:
Our Father, who art in Heaven,
Hallowed be thy name.
Thy Kingdom come, Thy Will be done,
On earth as it is in Heaven.Give us this day our daily bread,
And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.
Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the Kingdom, and the Power, and the Glory forever and ever. Amen.
