"Do everything in love” (1 Corinthians 16:14 ).
There was once a young man who was admitted from a village school to an elite college. Once at the top of his class there he met star performers in almost every subject and even more in extracurricular activities where he once used to dominate. The young man hated being eclipsed by all these talented students and after one term he withdrew back to his village school. There he was sure of his number one position. Unfortunately when it came to university admission this school could not secure a first grade and so he missed out. He then wished he had stuck in the elite school. “Maybe there was something good I could have excelled in while there!”
The fate of this young man is perhaps similar to one who compares the gifts God has blessed believers and feels his is at the short end of the stick. Though the gifts blessed believers with are for the building of the church ( 1 Cor 12: 4-6); yet they can also be misused for personal edification creating a toxic atmosphere of unnecessary rivalry.
Such was the situation with the church in Corinth. Against this the Apostle Paul reminded the believers, that actually, everyone had a far much superior gift only that the focus was elsewhere. It was the gift of love. “If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing” ( 1 Cor 13:1- 3).
Paul described love “the greatest of these” (vv 13); yet unfortunately, this gift is not promoted as much compared to other more pronounced gifts. And, like, the young man, some have withdrawn their service, because after all they believe are not gifted as much. Yet the beauty here is that when it comes to love every believer has not only been blessed with it but can equally excel. “Love 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” ( I Cor 13:8).
Today, if you had withdrawn from Christian service because you felt your gift was not up to someone else, remember you possess the greatest of all gifts: love!
Prayer today: Lord father God of Abraham, maker of heaven and earth, I thank you for the gift of love which you have blessed me with for the building of your Church and so I pray to use it as freely as you have given, in the blessed name of Jesus, I pray!
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17/05/2024 - 18/05/2024 All day“And I in righteousness I shall see your face; when I awake, I shall be satisfied with seeing your likeness” (Psalm 17:15)
One of the defining aspects we see in the life of the Lord Jesus Christ is that He began the day with prayer. “Very early in the morning while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed” (Mark 1:35). As he was always surrounded by crowds and after such a busy day before of preaching and engaging the Pharisees in debates this must have been a therapeutic moment for Christ when he would have some good time to himself.
But there was also more. For Jesus being away in a secluded place would also mean a chance to pour out His heart to God, meditate in quietness, plan for the day ahead and listen to the Father. Jesus must have looked up to this moment every day knowing its benefits. Conversations with His Father must have been real and intimate, bringing a certain soothing and uplifting of His spirit. You do not wake up and stick to something on a daily basis that is a drag – this must have been his best time of the day!
Martin Luther the leader of the protestant reformation is reputed to once have said, “I have so much to do that I shall spend the first three hours in prayer.” Here is the point. In the olden days before the arrival of locomotive transport those who were setting out for a long journey on foot had to start early with the first cock crow before the punishing sun came out. One of the things they had to start with also was a good meal, which was fuel needed to give them energy through the long walk to their destiny.
There are no rules about waking up to pray as first thing- or even saying prayer at a defined hour of the day. God is everywhere and ever with us. He is accessible at any time of the day. But there is something special about prioritizing our lives that the first thing we do is to talk to God. Just like the early traveller we need fuel, for the long day ahead!
Prayer for today: Lord Father God of Abraham, maker of heaven and earth, what a joy and privilege to make time at the start of any day, talk and hear from you, for the power I need through the day, this I pray in Jesus’ name!
