Love Abounds

And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in 

knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best

 and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, filled with the 

fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ- 

to the glory and praise of God.

Philippians 1:9-11

Reading through Philippians the other day, the Spirit really convicted me with these three verses. The more I thought about it, the more I realized how imperfect my definition of love is. I believe God is love, but when I try to define love, it is hardly as holy, pure, glorious as I believe God to be. Something is missing. My love does not abound. 

I'm still processing what it looks like to have abounding love, a wise and discerning love. But God used these verses to lead me back to the basics of my faith- my need for a savior and my savior Jesus. If I want the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ to be present in my life, I need to know Jesus. It's amazing how often we forget who Jesus is, what he taught, where he went, who he spent time with, what he stood for. It's hard to share Jesus with others when my own picture of him is unclear.

In order to become a follower of Christ who lives a life abounding in love, I need to take steps back and focus my eyes on Jesus. Like the song, I need to turn my eyes upon Jesus, look full in his wonderful face and let the things of earth grow dim in the light of his glory and grace. 

Paul prayed for the church of Philippi that their love would abound in knowledge and depth of insight. I pray that for all of us, that we may be pure and blameless until our savior returns, and that we may be filled with righteousness through the power of our Lord Jesus Christ.