Christian Devotionals and Scripture Applied to Everyday Life

Have you ever listened to a country music song? I know you have, but have you REALLY listened? Country songs are usually about some type of love - loving your man, your girl, your mother, your pickup truck, your dog - you get the picture.  When you take the time to process the words, you will uncover the world's view on love - a view that is usually dishonoring and self-serving.

Singing is a regular occurrence in our house. For no apparent reason someone will break out in a song and others will jump in to join the group. It is not an uncommon scenario for Walt Disney songs to be belted out (with all the voices and lyrics).

The green-eyed monster is a term referring to envy which was first used by Shakespeare in his play Othello. The ancient Greeks believed that the emotion of envy created an overproduction of bile in the body, thus causing the face to become an unpleasant green color. The color green is also used to describe someone who is ill. The envious feeling of discontentment or covetousness in regard to another's successes, possessions, or advantages, though it may not actually turn your face green, will  certainly produce a sick outlook on life - an outlook that will hinder the kind of love that the Bible describes.

I can still hear your childish voices reciting the first Bible verse we taught you. Ephesians 4:32 "Be kind..." was practiced and referred to often in our house from the time each little one could speak. These two words encompass so much of how we should love and act towards one another. Yet these same words are so hard to put into practice. We now often laugh at the infamous video of you siblings quoting this verse, only to seconds later start grabbing and yelling at each other. 

Thanksgiving dinner was ready to eat - well, almost. There was still one dish baking. The traditional scalloped oysters had been prepared and slid into the oven, but because of the doubled recipe it was taking a lot longer to bake. We waited and waited, but finally decided to get started anyway. Hey, the top of the casserole was crispy, so we were sure it would be fine.

What is love not? This is a question that has been running through my head lately. In the last hours of Jesus' life on earth He spent a great amount of time exhorting His followers to love one another. God is love and if we want to be like Him we must exhibit the characteristics of love that prove we belong to Him. But do we sometimes misunderstand what love is and replace it with actions or attitudes that are not in tune with God's love nature?