Subject of the Week
Love
Golden Text
. . . I am the Lord that healeth thee. Exodus 15:26 I am
Responsive Reading
. . . fear thou not, O my servant Jacob, saith the Lord; neither be dismayed, O Israel:
For I am with thee, saith the Lord, to save thee:
For I will restore health unto thee, and I will heal thee of thy wounds, saith the Lord;
And ye shall be my people, and I will be your God.
At the same time, saith the Lord, will I be the God of all the families of Israel, and they shall be my people.
The Lord hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.
Hear the word of the Lord, O ye nations, and declare it in the isles afar off, and say, He that scattered Israel will gather him, and keep him, as a shepherd doth his flock.
For the Lord hath redeemed Jacob, and ransomed him from the hand of him that was stronger than he.
And there is hope in thine end, saith the Lord, that thy children shall come again to their own border.
And I will set up shepherds over them which shall feed them: and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall they be lacking, saith the Lord.
Jeremiah 30:10 fear (to :), 11 (to 1st :), 17 (to ;), 22; 31:1, 3, 10, 11, 17; 23:4These citations are provided with copyright permission from the Christian Science Quarterly® Bible Lesson department
I try to remember that dishonesty isn't a true characteristic about any one of God's children. I think it helps to focus on all the qualities you love about that person. Even if at first I can only find one small thing, if I focus on that, soon I'm able to love more and more about them.
This is such an important question, thanks for bringing it up. When someone is doing something mean, I find it helpful to "love the person, hate the sin" - don't accept the lies they are telling, but love them through it all. Just because someone's behavior is bad, doesn't mean (s)he is bad. Beneath all of that, no matter what, (s)he is a good person. Also I have found that when someone is being mean, they are really just crying out to be loved. If you see it from that compassionate view, then you can really help them by not getting upset too. Your continued love and support (no matter what) will really help them grow.
I really love the story of David and Nathan in this week's lesson. Nathan was a son of David. Imagine having to confront the King on something he did that was really really wrong. I love Nathan's example. You can read what he did specifically by going to the 4th citation in the first section and reading on from what is in the lesson. It's really cool! When faced with a need to confront a wrong, I hope I can do it with as much class as Nathan.
Keep on trusting. Trusting God will help us to keep trusting our fellow man.
All we want to feel is a sense of worth. When we don't, we're apt to be inconsistent. By each one finding that 'conscious worth' that 'satisfies the hungering heart' within, it can strike that keynote of love in others.
by loving him without expecting something whatsoever in return.