LoveLove 

1 Though I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 3 If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast,  but do not have love, I gain nothing.

4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 8 Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10 but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears.

11 When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. 12 For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

Love Protects

It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

God, our good loving Father, always protects His children. Listen to God speak to your heart as you meditate on the meaning of the word protect. In the original Greek protect transliterates as stego which means to cover, to keep secret, to hide or conceal the faults and errors of others. God does not “out” our sin and failings in front of others. He does not shame or humiliate His children. Instead, 2000 years ago, He paid our debt and covered our sin on the cross with His blood.

Stego also means “the roof of a house.” As a roof shelters the inhabitants from storms, God covers us from the accuser. This does not mean we will never have trouble. We live in a fallen world and the Bible tells us to expect fiery trials. But God gets the last word. And His Word says He will use all things for our good. Good overrules evil. Love wins. Every time.

Because God always protects and covers you, you can always trust Him, always hope, and always walk in peace as your Father leads you. It is finished. Be loved, Beloved.