Love Must Be Sincere

Do you ever have those moments when you are reading the Bible and something just pops out and hits you smack dab in the middle of your forehead? Welcome to my morning. As I was minding my own business, perusing Romans 12 all of a sudden I read love must be sincere. And the thing is, this shouldn't really shock me. It shouldn't cause me to want to reread it six times. Because I think I am pretty good at the whole love thing. I love my family, I love my friends, and I even love lots of people I barely know! I mean, in my humble opinion I've got this love thing down. Only obviously, I don't. Because if I did, I don't think this verse would be haunting me.

So here I am, rethinking my thoughts on love and my actions on love. And there it is. In my heart I feel love for many, many people. I so badly want others to know that they are loved. But what do I do about it? Because love isn't just a thought or a feeling. It has to be lived out sincerely. It means getting messy and uncomfortable and sacrificing things you don't want to sacrifice. In my marriage maybe it means sacrificing the need to be right all the time. In my relationship with my daughter it means holding her in the middle of the night while she cries and whispering words of comfort instead of getting frustrated that she just won't sleep. In my friendships it means making sure I pursue my friends and maybe it means being there for them even when its not convenient for me. In my run-ins with strangers maybe it means starting up a conversation even when it feels awkward. Or maybe it means actually looking the guy with the Will Work for Food sign in the eye and seeing him as a real person. Or maybe it means being gracious with the crabby woman at the checkout line because I don't really know what kind of day she is having, and I can either make it better or worse.

Do I do these things? Sometimes. But do I do them with sincerity? Not always. And there is a

difference. Ask any mom whose teenage daughter says "Well soo-rry!" if they felt the contrition from those sarcastic words. (I know, I used to be that sulky, snarky teenage daughter...sorry mom!) So here's to doing the hard thing. Putting others above ourselves and making sacrifices out of love, without feeling like a martyr and holding onto hidden resentment on the inside. Here's to making sure our love is evident and sincere. To our spouses. To our children. To our friends. And to our world. In the end, we will either be remembered for our love or for our selfishness. Its our choice.

Today I am linking up with Rachel Wojnarowski for Whimsical Wednesdays! You can get to her blog by clicking here!