Show More Love - St. Paul Doesn't Just Want It To Be A Wedding Reading

Am I cheesy for writing a blog post about love? Of course not, and besides - I'm lactose intolerant!

Jokes aside, I've been reminded lately that love is a powerful thing. It has the power to build us up, and the lack of it causes us pain and anguish. St. Paul gives us the perfect framework to work with in his first letter to the Corinthians. He shows us what love is, and what it isn't. I've always been a fan of lessons that tell people what something is and following it up with what it isn't. It's important to know when we're obviously doing something wrong.

Before we get to the meat of the verses (and at this point, it's a cliche), we should pay special attention to the beginning of the chapter:

1 If I speak in human and angelic tongues but do not have love, I am a resounding gong or a clashing cymbal.

2 And if I have the gift of prophecy and comprehend all mysteries and all knowledge; if I have all faith so as to move mountains but do not have love, I am nothing.

3 If I give away everything I own, and if I hand my body over so that I may boast but do not have love, I gain nothing.

St. Paul shows us this powerful imagery and at the same time, we can imagine humans doing many objectively great things, but without love, they mean nothing. At a micro level, a parent trying to solve big problems inside a family without intentionally starting with love can mean very little. When we consider this on a grander scale, we may see that the end does not justify the means, especially if our hearts are not in the right place. We should be careful about the things we allow in our lives, what we do for others, and how we think about others doing things for us. Think about the people you work with, the communities you're a part of, and the things your loved ones do. They need to be shown love, and maybe they'll see that love should a part of all their decisions - big and small. I think this is a great set up because when we look at the next part, we can see that St. Paul really lays things out for us.

4 Love is patient, love is kind. It is not jealous, [love] is not pompous, it is not inflated,

5 it is not rude, it does not seek its own interests, it is not quick-tempered, it does not brood over injury,

6 it does not rejoice over wrongdoing but rejoices with the truth.

7 It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

8 Love never fails.

I think it's a shame when I hear St. Paul's letter at a wedding and it starts at verse 4 rather than at the very beginning with verse 1. First of all, it's only a few extra sentences, but really, it helps us see the big picture before moving into the detailed explanation. If you ever decide to have 1 Corinthians 13 read at your wedding, please consider starting at verse 1! And really have the reader emphasize the importance of love. Have them read with love, and with passion. And our job is to listen intently and take those lessons to heart.

I find it interesting that we often hear 1 Corinthians 13 at weddings, but we do not remind ourselves about these lessons in our everyday lives. Let's try to do better! We should do all things with love - we are challenged to do all things with love. When we are trying to move mountains in our lives, but do not do it with love, we may find ourselves lost in the process and in the end, it may mean very little (getting lost in the sauce). I want to reference my previous post about pursuing money because it is an example that we can empathize with. It essentially talks about breadwinners pursuing money for their families, but somewhere along the way, they stray away from their original goals and continue the pursuit of money for indulgent reasons. We can understand the many issues in the example, and yet, we're still torn because doing things for the sake of others starts with love, but isn't always sustained by love - it's transformed to something other than love if we are not careful.

Camilla and I like to show each other love in various ways, but that's the easy part. I am starting to recognize much faster when I have shown the opposite of love; when I have failed in loving. It sometimes comes in the form of criticism or pushing for perfection. I am now faster at acknowledging my faults and apologizing than I was before, but I know I still need to work on that. I want to continue to be the person Camilla loves most on this Earth and I know that takes consistent work. Sometimes it means grand acts of love, but oftentimes, it's the little everyday things.

Though loving Camilla is easy, I am often stretched beyond my limits when I see others I don't like and am challenged to see them with love. This is especially hard when someone I love has done something that has hurt me. These challenges are where we should recognize that God wants more from us. We should forgive more often and show love more willingly.

I think at the end of the day, if we continue to work on loving one another more - our brothers and sister in Christ - we will be better Christians, we will have stronger families, we will build better communities, and make a bigger and better impact on the world around us.

With love,

Khang

P.S. Tell us your love stories! Send us a message at faithandfi@gmail.com