Advent Week Four: Love
By: Megan McMaster
Imagine: An aerial scene panning over a snow laden forest. A woman bundled up in her winter coat and her hands buried in her pockets. She has her hood up and looks intently at the frozen ground as she joyfully steps from rock to rock and walks across a snow-covered log. She ponders and prays, “I walked right past love. Jesus, help me to be more attentive.”
This isn’t the opening scene of a Hallmark Christmas movie, I promise. This was simply my experience several weeks ago. Our staff team was invited to participate in a prayer walk around camp, and I found myself walking along the Fruit of the Spirit trail. It’s a short trail which connects the gravel road behind the A-frame to a small footpath next to Sylvan View. It was my first time on this trail in years.
I looked up and noticed the first Fruit of the Spirit sign about 30 yards ahead of me and the next one about 20 yards further down the trail. Quickly, I realized that I was walking this trail “backwards” as the first sign read Self-Control and the second Gentleness. Though, it didn’t particularly matter to me. I was simply grateful for the opportunity to pause, reflect, and pray.
Along the way, I prayed that Jesus would cultivate more Goodness, Kindness, and Gentleness in our staff team. I reflected on God’s Faithfulness to Camp Hebron over the past year. And I celebrated the Joy that Jesus has renewed for me. What better way to celebrate Joy than by playing in God’s Creation?!
Then, I realized it. I walked right past Love.
I paused, turned, and was amazed at the significance of the moment. If we bear Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self-Control but don’t have Love, it’s all for nothing. The Apostle Paul told the Corinthians:
If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn’t love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God’s secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn’t love others, I would be nothing. If I gave everything I have to the poor and even sacrificed my body, I could boast about it; but if I didn’t love others, I would have gained nothing…Prophecy and speaking in unknown languages and special knowledge will become useless. But love will last forever! (1 Cor. 13:1-3,8, NLT)
This Christmas, we are invited to experience the Love of Emmanuel—God with us. We are called to share that Love with others. As a matter of fact:
God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.
Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other. No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love is brought to full expression in us. (1 Jn. 4:9-12, NLT)
Friends, as we celebrate the birth of our Savior this Christmas, I pray that you will see and experience the full expression of God’s Love. I pray that our families and friends would know the height, breadth, and depths of God’s Love because of us. I pray that the joy and the magic of the Christmas season won’t blind us to the opportunities we have to love others. Go and Love others as Christ has Loved us.
May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. (2 Cor. 13:14, NLT)