This Month’s Theme:
Love Actually…
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonour others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no records of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil, but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
1 Corinthians 13:4-7
Reflection
Love is a very good word, but it is not easy to practice.
It’s not easy to love like Jesus. He sacrificed for all of us, not only for those who liked Him, but also for those who hated Him. We should not forget that it’s His love that allows us to enjoy our day, and that every breath we take is provided by Him. When we think about God’s love, we truly have a lot to be thankful for. And because we’re recipients of His generous love, we should spread this love to those around us.
May we eagerly love those around us as Jesus loves us.
– Sophie Song
Join in the Conversation
“Love conquers all” is a term we often hear. Where there’s love, any differences, obstacles, and challenges can be resolved and overcome.
But simply feeling the “love” isn’t going to magically smooth things over, especially when we tend to rub each other the wrong way. Just like the church that Paul was writing to in 1 Corinthians, we can get sucked into all sorts of conflict and hurt one another because of the differences in our roles, gifts, personalities, and opinions.
Which is why we need love to keep us together–love that is “patient and kind”, and “keeps no records of wrongs” (1 Corinthians 13:4-5). Love that shows forgiveness, grace, and mercy in the most difficult situations. We can be accomplished in many ways, but without love, everything we do is meaningless.
When 1 Corinthians 13 feels like an impossible to-do list, let’s remember: love is the fruit of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit will help us love well, by softening our hearts and reminding us, again and again, that because God first loved us (1 John 4:19), we too can love others.
Some questions for you to think over:
- How have you experienced the 1 Corinthians 13 love as shown to you by God and other people?
- How can you work towards passing the same kind of love to others? What would you want to pray about, to help you bear this fruit of love?
- What would it look like to see this love play out in different ways–and not just romantic love?
Topics to Explore
An “ideal” love–patient, kind, protects, trusts, hopes
- Does love really mean never getting angry with someone?
- How can we love when there’s so much anger in us?
- Can we love if there’s no trust
- How to continue loving when our love isn’t appreciated
- How to break up with someone in a loving way
Love does not dishonour, delight in evil, and is not self-centred
- Why should I speak up about bullying/abuse/unfairness that I see–it’s not my problem
- Why pride makes love difficult
- When saying nothing is unloving / When saying too much is unloving
- How can we “love ourselves” without being self-centred?
- What is love vs what is lust?
Valentine’s day topics
- What if I never get married?
- Why “friendzoned” isn’t the pit of despair we think it is
- X ways/reasons to maintain friendship even after the date didn’t work out
- When did ghosting become an acceptable norm? Is this something we should challenge as Christians?
That’s not all! Here are a few articles for you to read too–
Join in the Fun
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