Love vs. Selfishness
It has been said that the two greatest forces in the world today are love and selfishness. Selfishness is having or showing concern only for yourself and not for the needs or feelings of other people. (Merriam-Webster) It was Jesus who introduced a new kind of love to the world, and said that we are to love one another as He has loved us. But few people have learned to walk the narrow pathway of love. Marriage usually begins with a feeling of love. The bride and groom stand at the altar facing the minister/priest, declare their love for one another and make their vows to each other before God, a host of family and friends. All is sealed with an elaborate reception of excellent food and entertainment…and a honeymoon! Why is it that far too often these couples end up in divorce court? When a union is formed on human love it is based upon selfishness, and rather than giving we take. “What’s in it for me?” may be a conscious or sub-conscious motto! A spouse may moan, “He/she is not fulfilling my needs.” God has a solution for this problem. “Love” is a verb, not a feeling, and marriage is the school where we learn to love as Jesus loves. A husband and wife who are pursuing God’s love will look for ways to encourage and help each other mature emotionally and spiritually under the leadership of the Holy Spirit! This God-kind of Love makes marriage blossom as a rose with it thorns and its beauty! Neither partner will have the need to run off to seek fulfillment, but will learn to “function so that each preserves his or her own personality while responding to the desires of the other.” (Ephesians 5:32 The Heart of Paul)
PRAYER:
Heavenly Father, I humble myself before You, Your will not mine be done. Forgive me for being selfish and deliver me from insisting on my own way at the expense of others. I will mediate on your Word day and night. By the grace of God I will be an obedient doer of your Word, seeking to love as You have loved me. I renew my mind to your Word, and pray that your Word will dominate my thoughts, words and actions. I submit to Truth so that I will not be seduced or deceived by the works of the devil. I am born of God, I am born of Love and by Your grace I am strong in you, Lord, and in the power of your might. Today, I choose the way of Love, in the name of Jesus!
Scripture References: 1 Peter 5:6; 1 Corinthians 13; Romans 12:2; 1 John 3:9