It was one of those incredibly yucky days, weatherwise. 32°, rain, snow, sleet, wind. And all of them seemed to be hitting me in the face, no matter which way I turned. So, why do I feel so warm inside?
It all started Monday afternoon, before all of the yuck arrived. I met with a friend and we talked for three hours. Then on Tuesday I met with THREE friends. Are you beginning to see the reason for the warmth in my heart?
Good friends are amazing. They are gifts from God really. It all starts with this verse:
"Beloved, let us love one another, because love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. ⁸Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love." - 1 John 4:7-8
The word "beloved" here indicates that John is writing to fellow believers in the various churches he watched over. At the time John wrote this epistle most figure he was in Ephesus but it was not written to a specific church.
The point I'm getting to is based on the "God is love" part. I believe that believers experience a deeper love because of God's Holy Spirit that dwells in us. We literally have love IN us. How can some of that love not spill out into the world, simply by our being in it?
When we meet with our believing friends, aren't our conversations always more loving? More focused on God?
God provides many things for us in these lives that we live - air to breathe, food to eat, skills to earn a living. But the greatest gift is His Holy Spirit and, as a result, the ability to, and the joy of, loving others.
"And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love." - 1 Corinthians 13:13
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