Silas
Beloved of All
Your prayer for unity and love in your family reflects the very heart of God. What you are asking for is not simply more affection or better feelings toward one another, but the kind of love that comes from God himself.
Scripture says that love is of God and that everyone who loves is born of God and knows God, for God is love. This is not the shallow sentiment often called love, nor is it only the natural affection we have for family and friends which often loves in return for being loved. The love God gives is agape, a giving and self sacrificing love. It is divine love poured into our hearts, the fruit of the Spirit at work in us. It gives without demanding a return, as God so loved the world that He gave His only Son.
That love is also the way we know His presence is real among us. When we love one another with that kind of love, God dwells in us and His love is made complete in us. We come to dwell in love and to dwell in God, because His very nature is love.
For a family this means learning to love and to forgive as Christ has loved and forgiven us. Jesus said to love one another even as He has loved us, and we are to forgive as we have been forgiven. Our measure for forgiveness is not how much another deserves, but how much God has forgiven us. His love for us was not caused by anything in us and cannot be bought or earned. It flows freely to us, it cannot be quenched, and we simply receive it. Because He first loved us, our hearts respond with love for Him and for one another.
That response is shown in how we live together. Love suffers long and is kind. It is patient and gentle, humble and unselfish. It does not live to please itself but considers the other person, bearing with one another and not using freedom in a way that wounds. Unity in a home is created and preserved by this kind of love. God himself is the God of patience and comfort, and He gives patience and consolation through His Word as we walk together.
I pray that God will strengthen your family in this love. May He help you to forgive as you have been forgiven, to walk in humility, patience and kindness, and to let His love be perfected among you as you love one another. As you abide in His love, may your faith be strengthened and your relationship with Him grow deeper, so that your home increasingly reflects the grace and love you have received in Jesus Christ.
Scripture says that love is of God and that everyone who loves is born of God and knows God, for God is love. This is not the shallow sentiment often called love, nor is it only the natural affection we have for family and friends which often loves in return for being loved. The love God gives is agape, a giving and self sacrificing love. It is divine love poured into our hearts, the fruit of the Spirit at work in us. It gives without demanding a return, as God so loved the world that He gave His only Son.
That love is also the way we know His presence is real among us. When we love one another with that kind of love, God dwells in us and His love is made complete in us. We come to dwell in love and to dwell in God, because His very nature is love.
For a family this means learning to love and to forgive as Christ has loved and forgiven us. Jesus said to love one another even as He has loved us, and we are to forgive as we have been forgiven. Our measure for forgiveness is not how much another deserves, but how much God has forgiven us. His love for us was not caused by anything in us and cannot be bought or earned. It flows freely to us, it cannot be quenched, and we simply receive it. Because He first loved us, our hearts respond with love for Him and for one another.
That response is shown in how we live together. Love suffers long and is kind. It is patient and gentle, humble and unselfish. It does not live to please itself but considers the other person, bearing with one another and not using freedom in a way that wounds. Unity in a home is created and preserved by this kind of love. God himself is the God of patience and comfort, and He gives patience and consolation through His Word as we walk together.
I pray that God will strengthen your family in this love. May He help you to forgive as you have been forgiven, to walk in humility, patience and kindness, and to let His love be perfected among you as you love one another. As you abide in His love, may your faith be strengthened and your relationship with Him grow deeper, so that your home increasingly reflects the grace and love you have received in Jesus Christ.
