Love > Actions

It seems few holidays are as emotionally charged as Valentine's Day. Some dread Valentine’s Day, viewing the day as cheesy, discouraging, or fake. Others delight in the chance to show love to those dearest to them. 

Despite the camp you find yourself in, perhaps there is something to a holiday centered around giving and receiving love that shouldn’t be immediately disregarded or cheapened.

The apostle Paul penned a poignant description of love in his letter to the Corinthians. Paul spends the first half of his letter speaking against all that is seeking to divide the church in Corinth - disagreement over preferences, petty lawsuits against fellow Christians, false teaching, idolatry. He calls the Corithians to dwell in unity as one body, the church. 

And then, he speaks of love.

“If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge, and I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing,” (1 Corinthians 13:1-3). 

Think about Paul’s words for a minute. Imagine a believer who could speak all languages, interpreting even the language of angels. Imagine the Christian who could understand all mysteries, who knew every truth, and could exegete any Biblical text. Imagine the Christian with unwavering, perfectly steadfast faith. Picture that believer who is so generous, not holding back one penny from God. 

All of these Christians would be considered by many to be giants of the faith and the ones we all would want to emulate. Their actions look impressive.

Yet, Paul says if any of these Christians is lacking in love, their actions result in nothing. If the church in Corinth didn’t love each other, none of their “actions” would mean anything. 

Love for God and love for others are foundational to the Christian walk.

Our actions as leaders are important. The phone calls to check-in, the taking of attendance, the questions we ask to start the discussion are all important. But if we do not have love for those we are leading, our “actions'' mean nothing. Instead, these outward expressions should testify to something greater: the love that motivates them. 

So what if this Valentine’s Day, instead of scoffing at the silliness of the holiday or focusing solely on the romance of it all, we took the opportunity to intentionally show love to those whom we lead? In the message on Sunday, we were challenged to extend the kindness we have received from God to others. This includes showing love and kindness to those in our groups.

Here are a few ideas:

*Write a handwritten card to a group member, praising the evidence you see of the Holy Spirit working in their life.

*Bring a meal for a group member in need.

*Pray specifically for those in your group. 

*Text an encouragement a group member on Valentines - affirming your love and God’s love for them

*Call someone who is going through a challenging season. Leave a voicemail to let them know you are praying for them.

*Offer to grab coffee with someone in your group that you don’t know well.

It needs to be said - we love each of you and are thankful for your leadership at Highpoint.