Love That Keeps on Showin’ Up

Well now, friend, you’ve wandered up today like a tired hiker who finally spotted a porch swing waitin’ in the shade. So, go on and settle in on this here front porch because we’re about to talk about a kind of love that’ll stretch your heart wider than a barn door in springtime. John 15:13 says, “Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends,’ and 1 John 3:16 tells us exactly how we know what that love looks like by tellin’ us that Christ showed us this love by givin’ His life, and He calls us to love others with that same roll‑up‑your‑sleeves grit.

Now, if you’ve ever watched a stubborn ol’ mule refuse to budge or a lil’ ol’ raccoon that clings to a biscuit like it’s the last one on earth, you know tenacity when you see it. Mildred O’Connell and Martin Molnar sure had it. They spent two long years apart during World War II exchangin’ more than 4,000 pages of love letters. That there ain’t no puppy love. That there’s the kind of steady devotion that keeps showin’ up even when life throws every kind of obstacle in the way.

God calls us to love like that. Not the fluffy kind of love that sounds real good in a greeting card, but the kind that shows up in muddy boots and says, “I’m right here for you.” First John 3:18 tells us not to love in word or tongue but in deed and truth. And James 1:22 reminds us to be doers of the Word, not hearers only. Love is plum proven in action, not in talk.

If you’re strugglin’ to love someone right now, take it straight to the Lord in prayer. Ask Him to soften your heart, widen your patience, and give you a love that refuses to quit. He knows your heart better than you do, and He delights in helpin’ you love like He does.

Father, teach me to love with the same steady, sacrificial heart You’ve shown me. Help me to act, not just speak. Strengthen me to love when it’s easy and especially when it’s not. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Now, before this moment goes and slips away like a shy lil’ ol’ deer easin’ back into the woods, let me leave you with a truth worth holdin’ close. Love that lasts is love that moves its feet and does somethin’ real for somebody. Love that looks like Jesus is the kind that keeps showin’ up even when it is inconvenient, uncomfortable, or downright hard. And as you step into the adventures of your day, let your heart stay wide open, your hands stay ready to serve, and your love stay steady enough to remind the world that Christ’s love is still alive, still powerful, and still workin’ its way right through you.

With joy,

Gwen