Fruit of the Spirit: Love

AUTHOR’S NOTE: June 30th marked the halfway point of creating a full year of the Daily Devotional for Frustrated Co-Parents. I hope it has been helpful to read random scripture verses about various topics relating to co-parent conflict and parenting children of divorce. In this second half of the year, I am going to take a slightly different approach. I will start with a nine-day dive into the Fruit of the Spirit, and then follow with a topic-of-the-week, exploring concepts such as narcissism, keeping kids out of the middle, parental alienation, step-parenting, etc. I have chosen to begin this journey with the Fruit of the Spirit because I believe it is the best foundation from which to view every situation you may encounter with your co-parent. I hope this deeper dive into specific topics will assist you in developing a closer walk with Jesus and a more peaceful existence with your co-parent. If you would like to make a decision for Christ as a result of reading these devotions, please reach out to me at DCDierks@gmail.com. As always, I welcome your feedback, ideas, and prayers. Blessings, Diane

1 Corinthians 13:1-7

If I speak in the tongue of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 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. 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.

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

This is by far the most quoted scripture verse about love. It may have been quoted at your wedding, and now you wonder why love didn’t prevail. That would be a rhetorical question, given that the description of what love is became difficult or impossible in your former relationship. This is not surprising when we consider the concept discussed yesterday regarding the vine and the branches. We simply can’t do this alone. We cannot create love, nor can we sustain it by our own power. To continue in love in any relationship requires a mutual connection to God. It is interesting to notice that love is described as patient and kind, which are two of the fruits of the spirit alongside love in Galatians 5 (the scripture reading from yesterday). Love, then, should be a much-desired fruit – one that embodies other characteristics of God.