The Color of Love

Fall, the  most beautiful of seasons!  Vibrant colors warm the heart and refresh the soul.

I wonder why it has to be so temporary? Why couldn't we have an ever-orange tree? Ever-red? I always look forward to this magical season. Perhaps that is the reason that the Lord made it temporary. It is good to have something to wait for, no?

My husband and I just made a long drive to Kansas and back to Kentucky again. This is the season to do that! It was glorious! 

It struck me that one tree by itself is so completely glorious, but many trees altogether is breathtaking.

The blending of brilliant color is amazing!  

Its true of us as well. We all have our own colorful personalities. Diversity makes life so interesting. 

We can be very judgmental, looking on with our views, and missing the beauty of someones perspective. We like people who are like us. We easily love people who think like thoughts . . . those with similar passions.

A teenaged girl told me one time that she didn't see things the way her parents did. She had her own ideas about life.  My response was, "You don't have to agree with them. The Bible says that you need to honor them."

And that is what I think we need to do with people. Honor them. Treat them with love. Be like Jesus. I don't think that He believed in prostitution but He caressed the heart of the one trapped in it, drawing her to a better place. He despised the sin she was in, but He demonstrated love and respect to her. Witnesses of this affection were appalled! "How could He?" 

He could because He knew somewhere inside of her was a hurting soul that needed to be delivered. His kindness led her to repentance.

Jesus and a prostitute! Now there is some diversity for you! 

Jesus wooed her to the way of right instead of hating her for being wrong. 

One thing that always amazes me about the stories in the gospels where Jesus is actively liberating sinners, is the fact that those in the picture who were judging were just as wretched as those they were judging. They had a sin of a different sort.They had desperate need of forgiveness, too, but they were unaware of their own wretchedness. Perhaps their sin was less visible. Or maybe they were just blind to it.

So what am I saying exactly? When it comes to loving, I think we should be like Jesus. Before we hate someone else for their sin, or their differences, we should examine our own hearts because we might be harboring some sin of our own and not even realize it. 

Our love for one another needs to be vibrant! We need to be patient, kind, loving. When we live like that, it makes the world a much more glorious place to live. Lord, help us! 

Your thoughts?

"This is the message that you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another." 1John 3:11 NKJV