Readiness to go the distance

Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. Charity never faileth. (1 Corinthians 13:4-8 KJV)

Longsuffering heads the list, and I think that’s significant because to love freely and consistently in the other ways Paul names requires a readiness to go the distance. We can’t reserve our love for certain situations or special people, and we can’t withdraw it when people disappoint or fail.

Longsuffering is both a prerequisite and the bottom line.

How do we find it within ourselves to continue to show love to someone who has hurt us or others? Giving the person the benefit of the doubt can help, and so can remembering that we also hurt others through thoughtless-ness, blunders, and unloving choices.

But the surest way I know can be found in another translation of this same passage. In the New International Version, the phrase “love thinks no evil” is rendered “love keeps no record of wrongs.”

Hurts are real and take time to heal, but when we resist the all-too-human urge to replay them in the courtroom of our mind, when we choose rather to forgive and truly forget, God gives us the love and grace to keep on loving. - Keith Philips [1]

In all your plans, and in everything you put your hand to, only what’s done for love will last. - Anonymous

[1] Activated Grace to Keep On Loving