Pastor Clayton ~ February

Mary Martin - February 10, 2025

“Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.”
1 Corinthians 13:4–7

Our idea of love, especially in the month of February, can often be consumed by images of romance. Fluttering hearts, bouquets of flowers, and boxes of chocolate fill our view everywhere we go leading up to the 14th. These constant images can lead us to believe that love is just an emotion, saved only for those close to us. It can lead us to live like love is shown only to those we want to show it to.

However, as St. Paul tells us, love is something far greater. It is more than just an emotion reserved for select people. Love is a way of life; one that is essential to our lives as the Church. Not because we love perfectly — we can be quite lousy at loving sometimes — but because of our God who not only shows love, but is love.

If you want to see what love really looks like, look not to Cupid but rather to Calvary. Turn your eyes towards the cross where God’s steadfast, never changing love was on display for all to see. A love that is patient and kind. A love that does not envy or boast. A love that bears all things and endures all things.
God’s love for you is not just some emotion or good feeling towards you, but a way of living shown most clearly through His sacrifice for you. His love is shown through Him bearing your sins and enduring that pain for you. And His love is continually shown each day through His constant care for you.

So as we go through this month, and the many more after it, go about your days loving those who are around; all of those who are around you. By doing so you show others the love you were first shown, just as the Apostle John writes, “We love because He first loved us.”

Blessings,

Pastor Bryce Clayton