Taught to Love
Advent Week Two, Day Seven
1 Thessalonians 4:9-10

Focus: “…you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another…”

Loving believers is a true art form. Two authorities I’ve had the privilege of watching in my lifetime are my parents. I remember watching them intentionally build relationships with all the people they met each time we entered the doors of our church. It was as if they pictured a blank canvas each time they were in a conversation, with the desire to walk away having a fully painted masterpiece of doing life together. My parents both hosted and attended multiple gatherings of families with whom our lives were intertwined, with mutual love, caring, and purpose being displayed.

In 1 Thess. 4:9, Paul states the believers had been taught by God to love each other. He goes on to say their love of the believers in Macedonia was known, and he urged them to love more and more.

In our world, with so many desiring anonymity, where text messages and email are our primary forms of communication, are we losing opportunities to love others as God has taught us? When Blue Valley Baptist comes to the thoughts of those in our community, is our love for one another the first thing they think of, as was true of the church in Thessalonica? We must intentionally look for new and deepening relationships with other believers. We must love as God has called us to love.

This holiday season paint a new canvas or add richness to an existing one. And be urged each day to do so more and more.