The Message version:
9-10Love from the center of who you are; don't fake it. Run for dear life from evil; hold on for dear life to good. Be good friends who love deeply; practice playing second fiddle.
11-13Don't burn out; keep yourselves fueled and aflame. Be alert servants of the Master, cheerfully expectant. Don't quit in hard times; pray all the harder. Help needy Christians; be inventive in hospitality.
14-16Bless your enemies; no cursing under your breath. Laugh with your happy friends when they're happy; share tears when they're down. Get along with each other; don't be stuck-up. Make friends with nobodies; don't be the great somebody.
17-19Don't hit back; discover beauty in everyone. If you've got it in you, get along with everybody. Don't insist on getting even; that's not for you to do. "I'll do the judging," says God. "I'll take care of it."
20-21Our Scriptures tell us that if you see your enemy hungry, go buy that person lunch, or if he's thirsty, get him a drink. Your generosity will surprise him with goodness. Don't let evil get the best of you; get the best of evil by doing good.
NIV version:
Love in Action
9 Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. 10 Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. 11 Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. 12 Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. 13 Share with the Lord's people who are in need. Practice hospitality.
14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. 16 Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. [c] Do not think you are superior.
17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. 18 If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. 19 Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: "It is mine to avenge; I will repay," [d] says the Lord. 20 On the contrary:
"If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head." [e]
21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
....Need I say/write anything more?
I hope you find it in yourself to always look for the best in others even when they have tore you down to the core. Love. It is such a strong word. Misused and abused by many time and time again. I pray that you all have a blessed evening and that this verse speaks to your heart as much as it has been speaking to mine. P.s. this is what our sermon series has been about, there is still one Sunday left for you to join in on church with us if you haven't done that yet. Also, you can catch up on other sermons because they are online now. Just go to www.thewellinaustin.com and that is where it's at.
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4 comments:
"Love. It is such a strong word. Misused and abused by many time and time again."
hmmm, that's funny because you yourself use that word like its going out of style...see below
"LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE...that's what I like, lots of LOVE."
"I love spending time doing fun things..."
"I love where I am right now in life..."
"I love to laugh and live to love"
"LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE, its all about LOVE!!!!"
Those are just a few excerpts from your older blog postings. Maybe if you used the word a little less it wouldn't sound so watered down coming from you - thus be more effective on your blog readers. Just a suggestion. Take it or leave it.
Thank you for being such an avid reader and pointing out all my faults. It’s so wonderful to know that every word I type is being monitored by such a “perfect” person. You know what I really think; I think if I wrote anything, you would still have something negative to say (Anonymously, of course because you wouldn’t want anyone to know you were reading my blog) because you really don’t know me as well as you think you do. Maybe you should get to know me first before tearing me down a little more and understand that I am a loving person. Thanks again for reading and pointing out my faults, because I am sure you will continue.
p.s. anonymous commenter, you brave little soul, who are you to tell me how much or how little I should use the word love. Does God give us limits on love or does He limit us to only having a little bit of His love. I don't think so.
love is a word... nothing more nothing less. you could call it cheese and it would still just be a word.... regardless of how often you use it it is still a word.
what matters more is the compassion, the elating comfort you have around those you care about, and most importantly the sense of emotion you have around those people. "that which we call a rose would by anyother name smell as sweet" by using the word id say it doesnt trivialize or demean the idea or emotion it represents. sometimes its just used as a synnonym to show strong like of something. and kari you of all people know that love is more important as a feeling then a word! :) through faith itself you have an unbreakable love and feeling of togetherness with God. regardless of how often you use a word or how it is used... as long as your hearts in the right place nothing else matters. but i know you have a lot of cheese in your life for those you care about!!
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