Does love come first in your life? Is love evident in the way you live? Does your home and heart reflect love easily felt and seen by those who enter? So many questions about LOVE can be answered in The Love Chapter of the Bible. If you are reading this story in a place where there is a Bible, why not retrieve it and read that chapter (1 Corinthians 13). Perhaps, you have those precious scriptures stored in your heart where they can rise up continuously and keep you close to Christ. For those who do not know the passion of this Word or the power of Love coming first, may change come by inviting Jesus into your life and letting love reign in your heart.

Faith and hope are essential to believers but the greatest of all is LOVE. Love comes first as found in John 4:19. “We love God because He first loved us.” In the love chapter we are reminded that “love never fails”. The truth in that promise has profound meaning for each person reading this story. When we wonder why things happen as they do in our lives, we find peace in His Word and love that trumps all that comes against us. Love comes first and last. The choices we make on our journeys bring us closer or distance us from His love (and the love of those He put in our lives to share the journey with). Is love stopped up like a clogged drain or spewing forth freely like a fountain of life in your heart and home?

Faith gives us a peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Hope keeps us grounded as described in Hebrews 6, “…an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.” We do need faith and hope, but one day we will not. Faith will be sight and hope will be realized when we see Jesus. But LOVE is eternal, for love is of God and God is love.

The month of November signals seasons of thanksgiving and love that are here for us to enjoy with thankful hearts or dread with burdened hearts. Many things I ponder while writing this message of love. Taking time to enjoy the blessing of fellowship with our Lord and loved ones stirs strong. Surely, God would be pleased to see His children (all of us – red and yellow, black and white – active in or out of touch with church – all denominations – all social classes – foreign or native – prestigious or poor – educated or illiterate – seasoned or newly converted Christian – all of us are precious in His sight) come to Him. He longs for His children to live life out loud in love while trusting and obeying Him. Why?… because He first loved all of us, gave us life, and continues to give blessings beyond measure.

One of my best blessings is the opportunity to continue writing good news stories of LOVE in our local newspaper. I have pondered thoughts of taking time away from writing this column. I never want to bore readers with personal elaborations or lengthy stories. Yet, I know the promise I made to the One who gave me life, healed me here, healed Tim and James to Heaven, and loves me first, last, and all in between. He never breaks His promises to His children; neither should we break ours to Him. So, in this season of thanksgiving and love, I count it a blessing to keep writing about love and sharing it with each of you. Why, because Jesus loves even me!

Ponder on your blessings from God and promises made to Him through the years. Make Thanksgiving and Christmas seasons special by renewing your relationship with Jesus and restoring your faith, hope, and LOVE for your Lord and loved ones. He loves us this we know…for the Bible tells us so.

Let us keep God first and last (and all in between) in our lives and love Him with all our hearts, and love our neighbor as ourself, and love our enemies, and love one another in good times and bad…and we will truly be blessed beyond measure.

Becky Spell Vann is a long-time columnist for the Sampson Independent’s Faith & Family section and owner of the outreach ministry Tim’s Gift.

By Becky Spell Vann

Contributing columnist

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