The Power of Love

Love and faithfulness keep a king safe; 
through love his throne is made secure.

-Proverbs 20:28

Let's apply this proverb to our own realm. No, we are not literal kings - or queens. But we do have areas of influence that the Lord has entrusted to us, and we need to have God's perspective on success and true security.

Love and faithfulness are given as the most important factors to make us safe and secure. That is not exactly how things are portrayed in the media. For a person to be safe, it's said he/she needs to look out after self first. We must defend our rights at any cost. But we can look at all the broken homes and lonely lives to see this is a formula for disaster, not success.

In the Bible, Queen Esther is the perfect example of doing a risky thing for love's sake. Her predecessor was Queen Vashti. She was beautiful and powerful, but she used her rights to defend her rights. This cost her both her position and her marriage. Later, when Esther became queen, she faced a dilemma. The rights and even the lives of innocent people were threatened. She could remain silent and stay secure, or she could risk her position and speak out. Her cousin Mordecai challenged her that maybe she had attained her position "for such a time as this" (Esther 4:14, NIV). Love compelled her to be faithful to a higher responsibility. God honored her and used her to save many. I have a feeling that by showing an inner beauty, she gained respect, not only from those she helped but from her husband, too.

Live it out!
Photo Credit
The theme of today's proverb is "the power of love." Amy Carmichael said, "You can give without loving, but you cannot love without giving." Let's let the words of 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 ignite our hearts with a passion to love: "Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance. . . Love will last forever!"

-The One Year Wisdom for Women Devotional; by Debbi Bryson; August 8; p. 231

This devotion made me think of the areas of influence I have been given - my husband, my children and my family. Like Queen Esther, there is a choice - will I choose to satisfy my own needs and desires and keep myself comfortable, or will I sacrifice my needs and desires for the benefit of those around me. Honestly, I have times when I don't want to choose others over myself or when I start to feel bitter for serving others.

But according to 1 Corinthians 13:4-8, love is a choice between being self-focused and others-focused. When we love others above ourselves, we are giving those around us a glimpse of the kind of love Christ showed when He died on the cross for our sins. If Christ could love me enough to suffer and die, then the least I can do is love my family enough to take care of them - which is far less painful than what Christ endured.

So, Let's not become weary in doing good (Galatians 6:9). Keep loving others in your sphere of influence and see "the power of love" displayed in your life and theirs.

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