"Love never fails." - 1 Corinthians 13:8

Dear Jesus, though such a short passage, it speaks volumes in my heart. Love never fails. I think of the people from whom I want to walk away and I ask, "Never?" I think of the worst sinners who hurt so many people, and I ask, "Never?" I think of the repeated sarcastic remarks and failures to come through in a pinch and I ask, "Never?" Can we not just once give up loving those who declare that they despise our love? But your love, even in justice, never fails. I want that love that makes me pursue the lost, the mean, the twisted to give them one more opportunity to be restored. Give me that love by your Holy Spirit. Use the gospel story of your cross to melt my hard heart and teach me how to love even when I must confront or draw boundaries. Free me from my fickle heart! AMEN

"Of all the things love dares to do, this is the ultimate; though threatened, it keeps pursuing. Though challenged, it keeps moving forward. Though mistreated and rejected, it refuses to give up." - Stephen Kendrick