How often have we found ourselves on the receiving end of love that seemed just a little bit less than love? Probably more often than we care to remember. We've given what has seemed like our entire heart to another while it seems that they have offered nothing more than what was convenient for them, being sure not to give too much (or nothing at all) of themselves. We've given our time or been there more times than we care to remember when a friend was in need, yet when we needed them most it seems they thought we could make it on our own. Unfortunately, though not everyone in life fails us often we may come across those who claim to love us but the actions speak something quite differently. A few years ago God helped me to begin to understand that many times people say they love someone and earnestly mean what they say with all their heart but they can only love at the level at which they've grown. Did you get that? People can love only at the level of their capability within. Think about it this way.... Can you recall a time in your childhood when you really thought you loved someone with all your heart? And maybe even today you look back and believe that you did love that person but do you also see that there was a lot you've learned that impacts your view of love for another? Hopefully your view of love has matured. And though on a broader scale you would expect that the view of love matures with age, there are still other factors in a person's life that affects their ability to truly love the way we would expect. I Corinthians 13 gives the perfect definition of love; it encompasses a lot. I also think this passage serves as a great mirror for ourselves, which brings me to the relationship that I (and I'm sure many of you reading this) need to spend more time perfecting. I'm speaking of our relationship with God. How often do we spend so much time talking to everyone else yet we SQUEEZE in a few minutes to pray (little time simply talking to God)? How often do we spend so much time considering what others think of us yet we hardly give 1st thought to whether or not our actions or what we say offend God - the one we CLAIM to love so much? How often do we quickly go spend money on ourselves but have to think about handing some money to that person we know needs it because we're so critical or self-righteous concerning what they're going to do with it? Never mind there is this RESOUNDING annoyance in our spirit to do something. (Oops is that God's voice?) Yet...we say we love Him, with all our hearts.
The point I'm making here is that though we should never become susceptible to mistreatment or commit to less than God's best he has for us, our own individual relationships with our Creator should be great lessons in understanding and being patient with those who occassionally dissappoint us. Because we are human, sometimes we mess up in our love walk and God understands and allows us room to grow. Notice I said he allows us room to GROW. God never expects less than what he knows we are capable of. In the same manner, we should allow those we know truly love us room for growth, while expecting their best just as we require the same of ourselves.
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