Finally, brothers and sisters, rejoice! Strive for full restoration, encourage one another, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you. 2 Corinthians 13:11 NIV. When I was young I wish I’d knownThat I was loved for myself alone That mother’s frown was not disdainBut stemmed instead from her own…
Tag: Love
The Heart of Love
God allows us to experience the frailty of human love so we will appreciate the strength of His. C.S. Lewis I sighed as I picked up the dirty socks and put them in my boys’ hamper and closed their door for the night. Behind that door were two sweet boys who God was slowly transforming into…
A Second Chance for Love
Valentine’s Day is here and love is in the air. The allure of chocolate is everywhere! I’m definitely a fan of both. A little over a decade ago, however, I wasn’t sure love was an option for me anymore. I thought I might have to settle for chocolate. My first marriage of almost twenty-one years…
Loved Already
The 12-pound black-haired baby had ridden all night on a train through the vast Chinese countryside. She was giddy with exhaustion and passed serenely into my arms. I stared into her familiar eyes—eyes I had stared at for countless hours in grainy orphanage photographs. Who are you? I wondered. Of course, she was my daughter,…
First Love
“It was a flower,” writes Denise Levertov in the opening line of her poem “First Love.” She goes on to describe falling in love with a pink convolvulus at a tender age—“barely / old enough to ask and repeat its name.” It looked at me, I looked back, delight filled me as if I, not…
Jesus, the Face of Love
It was not by their sword that they won the land, nor did their arm bring them victory; it was your right hand, your arm, and the light of your face, for you loved them. Psalm 44:3 NIV The Son of God is Love’s sweet faceBouncing on His father’s kneeHe came to die and offer grace He…
What Is a Decade Worth?
No one has seen God at any time; if we love one another, God abides in us, and His love is perfected in us. 1 John 4:12 (NASB) A decade’s worth of familyEnough to fill the heartWith hope, love, and happinessEven when we are apart A decade’s worth of hugsEnough to go aroundAt least one for every dayWill make our…
Convicted: Let Yourself Be Known
I can still remember exactly where I was standing when it hit me. For several years, I had been fielding the same set of questions from well-meaning people, about that one painful place in my life that refused to be ignored. Each story may be different, but I’ve found we all have our own pain…
Knowing Love
Some 16 years ago, back in high school, I remember one of my good friends speaking about 1 Corinthians 13:4-8. We’d all heard it many times; “love is patient, love is kind, it does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud…” Yes, we knew all that well. They are great verses but…
That Which Cannot Be Earned
Years ago, I sat across from my counselor to hear her say, “Nothing you do can make God love you more or make God love you less.” My thinking was forever changed. To some, this might sound like a no brainer. But even though I was raised as an evangelical Christian, it was news to…
Anchored Voices 