SUNDAYS WITH JOYCE

 

LOVE

 

Let love be without dissimulation. Abhor that which is evil; hold to that which is good....Romans 12.9

A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. John 13:34

For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and a sound mind ..2 Timothy 1:7

He that covereth a transgression seeketh love; but he that repeateth a matter seperateth very friends......Proverbs 17:9

Many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it: if a man would give all the substance of his house for love, it would be utterly be contemmed......Song of Solomon 8:7

Hatred stirreth up strifes: but love covereth all sins......Proverbs 10:12

And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.......Romans 5:5

For the LORD loves the just and will not forsake his faithful ones. . . - Psalm 37:28

This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. – 1 John 4:9-11

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, 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. Love never fails. . .And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. - excerpts from 1 Corinthians 13:4-13

My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. - John 15:12-13

'Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against one of your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD. - Leviticus 19:18

God Speaks to Each of Us


God speaks to each of us before we are,
Before he's formed us then, in cloudy speech,
But only then, he speaks these words to each
And silently walks with us from the dark:

Driven by your senses, dare
To the edge of longing. Grow
Like a fire's shadowcasting glare
Behind assembled things, so you can spread
Their shapes on me as clothes.
Don't leave me bare.

Let it all happen to you: beauty and dread.
Simply go no feeling is too much
And only this way can we stay in touch.

Near here is the land
That they call Life.
You'll know when you arrive
By how real it is.

Give me your hand.


- Rainer Maria Rilke

 

 

 

Opening Our Hearts To Love

Let us open our hearts
the way we open a book we love,
not as a check-book,
wanting to know your balance.
Your balance of love is full.
There never can be a debit.
This is what you must know.
Your heart is full of love.

It doesn't matter how much
or how little other people love.
It matters how much you love.
Stir love in your own heart
and to open it up the way you would a door
to the beloved house you were born in.

This heart is not only where you have lived
and loved, this is where you live and love now.
There is no life but of the heart.
And your heart is not meant to be a secret passage.
There is no code to get in except the code of love,
and that is an open book where the pages turn automatically.

There is no use in stocking your love.
You must take it off the shelves.
Love hoarded is not love.
Only love given is love.

There are not meant to be closets for love to hang in.
Love is to be exposed to the elements.
Your love is to enter other hearts
so other hearts become aware
of the love that is already there.

If your heart needs reprogramming,
reprogram it now.
Set it back to its original fullness.
There are no empty hearts,
only deluded ones.
Give your heart a briefing.
If it has been stalled, set it afire now.
Rev it up. Get it into gear. Let it go.
Let it race to other hearts and get them going.
Let your heart revolve around love.