How does Love Hope in You?

We are called to allow our love to be the explanation for our lives in Christ, but we cannot do that if we are not showing the work of Christ. We can’t do that when we are consumed by our hurts, fears, past failures, or apathy so that we cannot see other’s hurts or see their injustice. When we do overcome our past and embrace our fear—and Christ will enable us to do that—we will feel and dispense real love; it will always be in the parameters of God’s Word, not in feelings but in the Fruit of the Spirit. If we fret and fight, we demean our Lord who Himself did not even argue when He was persecuted. If we can’t overcome our setbacks, our efforts of making Christ real in us or known to others will not only be wasted, but they could also have a negative effect, doing more harm than good. By the way, He already is real in you as a Christian; we just become blinded to Him. See Him, know Him, do as he says. Then, we can embrace His call, we can even love those who are unlovable, because we were once unlovable and He loved us. We can even learn to respect, listen, and be gentle so the real Gospel message goes out from us. Love will set our tone not only in how we are, but also in how and what we say.

A love that hopes means being optimistic and positive and not critical or condescending. This is a forward look, as in the awareness and work of our Lord in our souls and on to others around us. It is looking at the positive and the bright side, basking in God’s Son of Light and not in the darkness of humanity and all of its pessimism, cynicism, and despair. It lives in the present as it looks outward to others so we have clarity and confidence in what is good and could be good in others. This love is the image of God and the profession of the Christian. Thus, we can take our assurance that we have in Christ and be more assured that He is at work in us and in others so we are not so distrustful and suspicious or give up unless we have to. What we have in Christ can not only be a display, it can be a gift, which gives us certainty and confidence. This also ties to faith, because when we run low on faith, we can cling to hope and then we can glean more faith. So, do not give up on hope, because love does not (Job 28:12-19; Psalm 19:10; 119:14, 72,127,162; Prov. 3:13-15; Isa. 33:6; John 3:16; Rom. 8:24; 1 Cor. 13; 1 Cor. 8:13; 9:10-12, 23; James 2:14; 3:17; 1 John 3:14).

If hope and trust are hard for you and real love is still at your door step but not in your heart and mind or practice, consider this: Christ suffered and endured the ultimate evil for being the Ultimate Good and doing the ultimate good for us. He is our example in life and love and upon whom our eyes must always be focused! We are called to be enthusiastic and faithful—and we can be! It is far more important how we come across to others than anything we say to them; if we are not what we should be, the message of love, our attitude of love, and our understanding of love will be compromised and distorted!

How can you see the potential of what you can do and how you can bring more patience and hope to your relationships?

How would this affect your spouse, friends, co-workers, and others and bring them into a deeper level of love and commitment? What will you do about this?