“Love one another as I have loved you…Love one another.” John 15:12,
17
One of the last
conversations Jesus had with His disciples was more of a love letter than a pep
talk. They were a band of misfits that
Jesus had turned into family. They were
the ones He chose to do life with once His ministry began. Through their days spent with Jesus they
learned grace, forgiveness, patience, strength and power. They laughed…they cried… they learned…they loved well because they were well loved. Jesus began this passage with the command to
love and ended this passage with the same command.
The bookends of love…what a life well lived to experience this
kind of love. As my eyes first opened to
this world, they opened to love. ‘We
love you’ were the first words I am sure that my little ears heard as my eyes
were trying to adjust to the new light of life.
My parents loved me well, and because of this love I have a picture of how
I am to love. My dad gave me exemplified
love until the end. His last words to me
to close his earthly life were the same words to me to open my life… ‘I love
you.’ The bookends of love…
Bookends are a funny thing…they
allow the stability for what is in between.
They give the proper support for the valued contents to be propped up. Bookends keep its contents from falling over,
getting damaged or getting lost.
Bookends house what is important and showcase what is beautiful. The bookends of love are no different. Love should work for the benefit of others,
and not just ourselves. Our view of love
should not be just what we can get from the world, but what we can give to the
world. Love protects, it props up another,
and showcases the beauty of the other person when loved well. Love does not demand its own way but seeks to live
life in harmony with those God has chosen for us. When we remain within the boundaries of the bookends
of love…God’s love for us and our love for Him…we will be able to love well.
‘Love never ends…’ 1
Co 13:8
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