Doing It all in Love

Let all that you do be done in love. (1 Corinthians 16:14 ESV)

Nine little words that sound so easy, but can be so difficult to accomplish. I believe that not a word is wasted in God’s book of instructions. Therefore when it say “Let all that you do”, I know it means ALL.  Not SOME. Not MOST. Not AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE.  Simply…ALL.

That is a tough direction to follow because sometimes that “all” includes the way we act towards people who have harmed us, people who have left us brokenhearted or so angry we see red.

To let all we do been done in love requires the great act of forgiveness. To forgive is to let go of the hurt or pain that someone has caused you, relinquishing it not because the other person needs you to, but because you need to do it for yourself.

So many times, I have wanted to hang on to the anger and wallow in it. I have let it consume me, make me terribly bitter, and quite frankly, not pleasant to be around. I have let anger and pain do its work in me and take away my confidence and feelings of self- worth.

It would be so easy to cling to those hurts and to hold grudges against the ones who caused them. That is certainly what the enemy would like us to do. He would love nothing more than to keep us in a state of disheartened dishevel. 

When we walk around in a state of unforgiveness, there is a piece of our heart that is hardened, and no good can penetrate that spot. It is a burden in our heart that gets heavier and heavier as time goes by.  It roots deeper and deeper as we sit and ponder on it. This wound holds us captive. It is like a noose around our necks. The only way we to break the chains of this bondage is to let the offense go.

Learning to let go doesn’t happen like a flash of lightning. It is more like the slow drift of the clouds. Forgiving takes a lot of prayer, repeated prayer, and a strength that can only be found in knowing and clinging to our Creator.

When we rely on him, when we seek him and fill our hearts with his truths, we can slowly begin to unravel that chain that the enemy has so cunningly wrapped around our hearts. This doesn’t mean we forget the offense. It simply means we are making a conscious effort to put it behind us and walk in the freedom that forgiveness offers. Forgiveness is us making the statement to the enemy that he no longer has that hold over our hearts and minds.

When we take back what the enemy has stolen from us…our confidence, our joy, our hope…only then can “all that we do” be done in love.

Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you. (Ephesians 4:32 ESV)

God has forgiven us so much. He will continue to forgive us right up until we meet him in eternity. He does this because of his great love for us. We are to be imitators of his word. This means we have to forgive others as he forgives us and we need to act out of love towards our fellow mankind.

How wonderful it would be if everyone acted out of love! We can’t control what others do, but we can choose to do the right thing in our own hearts and our own actions. By doing so, we set that Christlike example for others. We become that beacon on a hill for those around us to see.

Let go of the burden and live in the love that Christ offers. Don’t hold on to the hurts that you have experienced. Use them to grow and strengthen yourself, and allow yourself to walk in freedom into the marvelous love of Jesus Christ.