It’s power to makes us feel complete and heal relationships is matched by its power to make us vulnerable and feel pain.

Sacrificial love will make us surrender our pride…our safety…and sometimes we’ll feel our sanity.

It’s this type of love that has led people to stay in abusive relationships (which I’m not excusing, just explaining.

I’m saying all that to say this. If you find yourself challenged by loving someone that you don’t understand, remember this…

You don’t have to understand someone to love them.

And, also remember that when we hurt the ones we love, it doesn’t mean we don’t love them. I just means our love isn’t perfect.

Notice the behavior of perfect love as God so eloquently describes through the Apostle Paul…
1 Corinthians 13 (NKJV)

Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. 2 And though I have the gift ofprophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body [a]to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing.

4 Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not[b]puffed up; 5 does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, [c]thinks no evil; 6 does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; 7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

8 Love never fails. But whether there areprophecies, they will fail; whether there aretongues, they will cease; whether there isknowledge, it will vanish away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part. 10 But when that which is [d]perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away.

11 When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things. 12 For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.

13 And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

None of us have perfected this.

We aren’t perfect and neither is our love…but God’s is.

Love is hard, so love hard because…

If you don’t love hard, you’re hardly loving:-)

BE BLESSTIFIED!