Sunday 7 July, 2013

11 Now may our God and Father himself and our Lord Jesus open up a way for us to come to you. 12 May the Lord make your love grow. May it be like a rising flood. May your love for one another increase. May it also increase for everyone else. May it be just like our love for you. 13 May the Lord give you strength in your hearts. Then you will be holy and without blame in the sight of our God and Father. May that be true when our Lord Jesus comes with all his holy ones.

Paul is thrilled that this group of believers has continued on in the Christian faith.  He is very encouraged by this fact and wants to be with them.  The Thessalonians were inspiring!

Paul’s prayer for the Thessalonians is that they continue to grow in love for one another and for those around them.  Basically Paul wants love to spill out into everything they do.  If they can continue in faith and love they will be in the position the Lord wants when Jesus returns again.  ie strong and blameless before Christ.

­It’s a reminder to me of the importance of love in all we do.  Here were a group of believers who, for the most part, were getting the Christian life right and Paul encourages them to love all and sundry.  Loving those around us isn’t always easy and at times seems beyond us, none the less that’s what Paul was teaching the Thessalonians.  We too, are called to love in this same way.  Sure gives us something to aim for!

Dear God, please fill me with your love so that I can love those around me like Jesus did.  Please help me to forgive when I need to and give me the strength to keep on loving even when I’m not loved or even liked return.  Amen

Written by Ainslie Woods