Meandering Monday - Keep on Loving - Martin Wiles

Welcome to Meandering Monday, where we take a trip back to an earlier post and enjoy it again.

Our great desire is that you will keep on loving others as long as life lasts, in order to make certain that what you hope for will come true. Hebrews 6:11 NLT

I’m the first to admit, I’m not perfect. Never have been.

And I’m sure there have been many times during my life when acquaintances, friends, family, and co-workers have found me difficult to love. Yet, despite what I know about myself, I still frequently find it hard to love others unqualitatively.

Such as the church treasurer who got mad because the ruling body decided they would audit the books annually. He took this as an affront to his credibility, and I was the one he chose to direct his toward. Or the woman who blatantly accused my wife of trying to take over things in the church…activities no one else was doing. And the deacon who wanted to “think” about allowing me to go bi-vocational even though the church couldn’t pay me enough to live on. And how can I forget the man who challenged my decision to have a toilet at the church repaired without first voting on it at a church business meeting? All people who were difficult to love.

Whoever wrote this letter wanted these believers to keep on loving those difficult-to-love people. In fact, their love would fulfill all God’s commands and keep them from becoming spiritually dull and indifferent.

Just after loving God with our entire hearts and beings—according to Jesus—comes loving our neighbors as we do ourselves. The above are just a few examples of neighbors who were difficult to love. All of us can give our personal examples. But then again, loving them only when they’re easy to love doesn’t take much effort—or love—and doesn’t even define love.

Unconditional is a better term and the type of love we need to show. This is the way God loves us when we disobey him, affront him, neglect him, try to manipulate him, or totally disregard him.

Whom do you need to show love to?

Prayer: God of all love, teach us to love others unconditionally as You do us. 

Tweetable: Whom do you need to keep on loving? 

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