Love:

“Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, as love covers a multitude of sins”
~ 1 Pet 4:8

Love one another earnestly. Hmmm. Not casually, not sort-of. Not when convenient or when I’m feeling particularly inspired. Not because someone is deserving or lovable or “worthy”; (trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind…) but seriously, earnestly.

King David was the poster-child of “love covering a multitude of sins…” The example of a great man whom God loved dearly, in spite of his continual disobedience, ego, hot-headedness, mistakes. Sound like anyone I know? (Hmmm again. Sounds like me…)

That “covering” is not a concealer or a cover-up. It’s the blanket of grace. Hmmm.

Love is hard. It’s risky. It involves huge potential for pain, for suffering, for rejection, for loss. Love isn’t for wimps. It takes courage to “cover a multitude…” It takes grace, and grace is a product of courageous love.

Ah. Just like Christ’s love for us! God sent his son to show us what love looks like, to example to us the selflessness, generosity and likelihood, no, certainty, of pain in loving others. Who suffered more than Christ in love? What a sacrificial act and a sign of God’s love for us!

But, it’s going to hurt.

My prayer for this Christmas, is that we will keep loving one another earnestly. That the celebration of Christ’s birth will inspire his light to shine through us, to cover ours, and others’ sins in a gentle blanket of grace. That we can truly represent Christ well to the world, through courageous, loving actions, words and heart.

Jude Mitchell, Church-Lady-still-in-training