Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. – Romans 12:10

Love is an action. Four simple words that rang loudly in my ears and stirred around in my spirit and got me thinking about my own actions. She was right, love is an action. Yes, it’s a feeling we have, but more than that, it’s a choice we make. We choose to love someone, or we choose not to. We choose to serve someone, or we choose not to. Love requires a response of some sort from us and we choose what that response will look like. Let me just say that I am not talking about responding in love to abuse etc, or to having your freewill taken away from you, because that is an entirely different conversation. I am talking about those of us who have a choice and the choice WE make. When faced with loving someone, what will our ACTION be? When we are face to face with someone who has a different opinion to ours, or a different belief, or a different lifestyle, what will our action be? When we are face to face with people that hurt and betrayed us, what will our action be? Will we choose to act in love?

Jesus had a choice to not go to the Cross, but He chose to go out of love for us. That was love in action. He chose to put His own pain aside to see us reconciled with our Heavenly Father.  That was His act of love. And while He isn’t asking us to lay our life down for others, He is asking us to love like Him; to show grace and kindness and to extend love to those around us. And that can be hard. Really hard. But we need to try. The love we freely receive from God should be just as freely poured out to others around us. Again, easier said than done, but with His help, it can be done, we just need to ask Him and allow Him to do the work in us that is necessary. What will our action be today?

Father, thank you for Your love that is endless and unconditional. Thank you that even when we were far from You, You didn’t stop loving us but kept seeking our heart. Would you help us to love others well. Help us to always choose to love and honour those around us. In Jesus’ name, amen.