1 Corinthians 13 New International Version (NIV)
13 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. 2 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. 3 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.
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. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10 but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. 11 When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. 12 For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.
13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.
This well known scripture is usually read at weddings and sometimes at memorial services. Paul wrote it to help teach the people of Corinth how we should act as Christians. Now that we are well into our social isolation, quarantine, or whatever you want to call it, patience can be running a little thin. The novelty has run out and we are getting more anxious about when this pandemic will be over and when we can return to “normalcy”. We are not necessarily our best selves right now. Things that didn’t bother us before can really irritate us, and sometimes our frustration at what is going on the world around us comes out in ways we are not expecting. We can be short tempered with the ones that we love the most and are around the most.
One study technique that I learned with this scripture really helped me to understand what Paul was saying in a very personal way. I want to share it with you because I found it very powerful in my faith journey.
Replace the subject from verses 4 – 11 with your name. Like this:
Suzanne is patient, Suzanne is kind. Suzanne does not envy; she does not boast.
Looking at the scripture this way makes it very personal. We all need to remember to show grace, including to ourselves during these stressful and anxious times.
Everyone is thrown off their routines and nobody likes to be stuck inside. One way to help with our mental and emotional health is to live out our lives in the manner that the Apostle Paul was talking about. How can you be kind and hopeful? How can help others to persevere? In these times we need to rely on our relationship with God and each other even more than when everything is going well.
Connect, be supportive and give others and yourself grace. We will get through this. God can create something beautiful out of this mess and in fact, already is. Neighbors are getting to know each other, and communities are forming where there were none before. We all have our days when we grieve and that is normal. Know that God is with you and that we will get through this with our faith.
Grace & Peace, Suzanne