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.
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
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. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. 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. 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.
And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love.
1 Corinthians 13
Reading these words from Paul’s letter to the people of Corinth has always lifted my heart and spirits, and I believe these words have never been more needed than right now. At a time when we as a people are questioning just about everything said by the news media and our leaders, these words bring comfort to my soul. Love is what the world needs right now and yes, I have the song by Burt Bacharach made popular by Dionne Warwick playing in my head.
This time will pass, and history will eventually see what was done right and what was done wrong, and we have done both. However, we need to remember to have faith in God, hope in His love and promises, and love our neighbor as ourselves, like Jesus commanded us to do. Those things never change.
The past few weeks have been difficult for me, we all have our ups and downs and I was having a down week or so. The love of God shown through members of this church family, my church family has been what has got me through these times. Connecting with others, even if just through a simple thing as a phone call and asking how you are really doing has been nourishment for my soul. It is amazing how much a thank you even means now when it is said in love. Love is what is going to get us through this. I hope that we remember that and keep some of the lessons learned during this time. Lessons of learning how important connecting with others is, even if it is a simple as making a phone call. Lessons about taking time to enjoy the nature right outside our window. Lessons that we don’t have to be going places all the time and can just be at home enjoying the company of our family. Also lessons of how important our family and friends are to us, how we miss them when we can’t be together, and how we often take it for granted that they will always be there. All these lessons center around love. Even trying to support our local small business that are struggling so much right now, center around love. The love for those families and what they and their business mean to us and our communities.
It was such a blessing to be able to connect with all those who came for our drive thru Communion, even if it was for just a few brief minutes. It is also a blessing to have George’s sermons now being transcribed so that our folks who are not streaming services can now read them a little later in the week. We have volunteers that are taking sermon packets that contain the last sermon and the past weeks Daily Blessings to folks who are not electronically connected and connecting with them. A blessing that works both ways, for the person receiving and the person delivering.
While we seem to be able to open up a bit more, we will continue to do so with love and safety in mind, so CUMC will be opening up more cautiously than other places. We do that out of love and caring. Remember that while the campus has been mostly closely the church has still been in ministry, as Krista puts it. We continue to have faith, hope, and love.
Gracious and Loving God, help us to have faith and trust in you when times are difficult. Create in us eyes and hearts that see your blessings that surround us every day. Let our hearts and spirits be lifted when we see kindness shown to others and help us to reflect you love and grace to all those that we encounter today, for we do not know what their hearts and spirits are going through. We thank you for the lessons learned during this time, lessons of how important our connection with you is, how important our family and friends are to us and for putting life into perspective. Be with us as we struggle through these times and help us to live out our faith in way that reflects your love.
Amen
Stay well and stay safe. Remember to be the hope you wish to see in the world.
Suzanne