Since today is Valentine's Day--a day for love letters--I want to focus on Philippians 1:3-11. Obviously, it's part of a larger letter to the church at Philippi. This section of the epistle is a love letter from Paul to the church. Paul writes:
3 I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, 4 always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. 6 And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. 7 It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. 8 For God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus. 9 And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, 10 so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, 11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.
I hope that you'll take the time today to write a love letter to someone who's dear to you. It doesn't need to be a letter that pledges your romantic love--there are many different kinds of love that are important to express to people. If you're having a hard time finding the words to say to that special person in your life, then why not borrow some of the words of the Bible?
Rather than writing a long epistle myself today, I'm simply going to recommend a website in which pastoral counselor Christ Legg talks about the five words for "Love" in the New Testament. I hope you check it out, and that you'll consider the type of love that you have for a number of different people. Then, I pray for you the same thing that Paul prayed for the Philippians (verses 9-11), that your love will abound with knowledge and discernment, that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless, and that you'll be filled with the fruit of righteous. There are so many kinds of love that the world wants us to give and receive that are impure and unholy, but God wants us to keep our love clean and godly. I pray that your love may be blessed today!
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