Love is...

The following are three different versions of a passage from 1 Corinthians. I have been meditating on this passage not simply because it is really beautiful, but because it seems to reveal different thing to me depending on how I read it. The first read is simply taking it at face value. Its the passage most people know from weddings and is pretty and uplifting. 

1 Corinthians 13:4-7

 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.

The second reading is a bit different. I don't know about you all, but sometimes God seems really big and powerful to me. I read about some of the situations in the world and think "only God could sort this one out" and than I get frightened at a being that actually could do so. The problem with that is God shouldn't be so big that he frightens us, and yet- at least for me- at times He does. I find fear paralyzing and not at all conducive to living a Christian life. I also know that another name for God is love ( Deus Caritas Est). So, when I fear God I try to use this passage to meditate by replacing the word Love with the word God in this passage. It is incredibly comforting; listen:

God is patient, God is kind. God does not envy, God does not boast, God is not proud.  God does not dishonor others, God is not self-seeking, God is not easily angered, God keeps no record of wrongs.  God does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  God always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

The last version is different still. I use it as an alternative examination of conscience. This time instead of replacing Love with God, I replace it with my own name. As I start to list out "Ellen is this or that" I am able to discern almost immediately what I need to work on next. It also helps me find progress in myself and encouragement that I can and do grow. You can try it yourself by replacing your name below:

(your name here) is patient, (______) is kind. (______) does not envy, (________) does not boast,
( ______) is not proud.  (________) does not dishonor others, ( _________) is not self-seeking, ( _______) is not easily angered, ( _________) keeps no record of wrongs.  ( ________) does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  (_________) always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.