1 Corinthians 13:4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
This is one of the more famous verses, often used in wedding ceremonies and anything including love, whether books, decorations, mugs and cups, etc. You have likely already heard this verse, listened to a sermon on it, or perhaps completed your own study on it in the past. But today we look at it not as love, but as kindness, though the two can often be interchanged and used synonymously.
Love is patient, love is kind. While the verse may focus on love itself, we are seeing it used in reference to different actions and behaviors. Love is patient and stands strong when you don’t feel like you can do it yourself. Today, as I sit and attempt to write this devotion, my 9 year old daughter is making it very difficult (which is why I usually don’t attempt to write while she is around). My patience is wearing very thin. But God is reminding me that love is patient. Love is kind. I can respond with kindness and tolerate her constant interruptions because I love her and she is a blessing in my life, even when I feel like I am at my wits end with her.
Responding with patience and kindness is a choice. It may be a difficult choice to make since we want to respond with other emotions instead, but we choose to show our love to others by our response. We choose to be kind and not respond with a short temper or other negative response. Choosing to respond as God would respond is not our natural response, but it demonstrates our love for God and for others when we do so.
The passage goes on to discuss other responses – it is not envious, boastful, or proud. We won’t go into each of those today, but each could be a study in and of itself. Love is many things, and over all of it sprinkle kindness. Let your kind attitude and response be the outpouring of your heart.
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