Wisdom in Love

In today's society we hear a lot about love. I love chocolate, my husband, a good book and my kids. Sometimes it gets hard to decipher what real love looks like. We observe the couple with the seemingly loving marriage file for divorce after 27 years saying,"We just aren't in love anymore." Or the ever popular breakup line I love you I'm just not in love with you. Love, were told, is an intense feeling that should never fade, but when it does you have the right to go look for it in someone else.
So what does love look like for someone striving to live a life of wisdom. The bible gives us some clues. The biggest being I Corinthians 13. "⁴ Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. ⁵ It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. ⁶ Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. ⁷ It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.  ⁸ Love never fails." This all sounds good but what does it look like.

Love is Patient : Even after telling your kids 15 times to pick up the shirt they dropped in the middle of the room, love does not loose its cool.

Love is Kind: It always chooses kind words, and actions. This is not reactionary based on how I am treated but an action choice. I choose to treat my coworker kindly even when they are rude and inconsiderate.

It Does not Envy: Love is not upset when passed up for the promotion again. It does not spend its day wishing for Mr. Smith's boat, Mrs. Fing's big house. or Miss Jones independence.

It does not Boast and is not Proud: In the last few weeks my husband and I have jokingly been starting sentences with, "Not to Brag. . ." Which means we are about to. Love says I do not need to be the center of attention. Nor do I need to draw attention to myself by singing my own praises. If my actions are noteworthy let someone else take note. I do not need to point them out.

It does not dishonors others: In my last blog I talked about honor. Honor is respect and admiration. Love always chooses to respect and admire.

It is not self-seeking: Love is not looking out for their own interest. It is more concerned with the needs of others than it's own. It does not look for self gratification because it is on the look out for how it can satisfy others.

It is not easily angered: Love does not use sarcasm or angry words to cut and hurt. While it might get angry it does not have a short fuse. Those around us do not ave to worry about the slightest thing setting us off. They know that we can take a lot before we become angry. Even in our anger we do not harm another with our words or actions.

It keeps no records of wrongs: This is a hard one for me. I like to keep all those mean things that have been said filed away so I can take them out when I need to and replay them in my mind. I can say see this is what was done to me. This is why I react the way I do. See I am justified. But Love says it does not matter. Let it go.

Love does not delight in evil but rejoices in truth: When love hears that something bad has happened to someone who "deserved" it, it is not happy. It does not pass on juicy gossip. It chooses to be happy when the truth is discovered. When the truth is brought to light and lies are not given a chance to grow.

Love always protects, always trust, always hopes, always preservers: Love is in the business of building someone up. Even when they are doing their best to destroy what they have. Love chooses to believe the best about someone. It always believes that truth will win. It always stays no matter what.

Finally Love never fails: This kind of love will always be around when a wise person chooses it.
Love is not a feeling. Love is a choice. Love is a decision to chose the best action instead of the worst reaction. True Love is what a wise person always chooses.