Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins.
1 Peter 4:8 NLT
The fourth phrase Dr Bycock highlights in The Four Things That Matter Most is the source and sustenance of successful relationships. Just three simple words but they mean so very much: “I love you”! In my marriage, both Jayne and I frequently say these words to each other. Do they depreciate in value as a result? Most certainly not. They restate the very essence of our relationship, which is love. This love speaks of appreciation and respect. It also speaks of reliability and commitment. The most remarkable thing is that love grows deeper year on year, and this is not limited to one’s spouse. The people I love, I do so more, the longer we journey together. It is also true of my love for God. I certainly loved God at the start of our friendship. Today, the depth of that love is beyond words and understanding.
It is easy to locate love within the narrow confines of romantic attachment. Yet love is far more robust and powerful; it can cover “a multitude of sins”. Love can be expressed through your commitment to justice, compassion for the marginalised, in service of God and others – as well as within the intimate relationship of marriage. But love requires discipline to prevent it dying.
People who lose someone unexpectedly vividly remember their last conversation. There is great trauma if the last words were said in anger or if true feelings have been left unsaid. I remember well my final conversation with my first wife before she died five days later, without ever regaining consciousness. Again, why wait to declare our feelings until the end of life?
QUESTION
Will you look for opportunities to express love in word and deed today?
PRAYER
Thank you, Lord, for loving me enough to die for me, to make it possible for me to truly understanding what love is.
Image-1.b4da1c34fa9847dea6ee6529d0de0d68.jpg
