Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
1 Corinthians 13:7
One of my favorite rides at Disneyland, California is Splash Mountain. This ride is based on the Disney movie, Song of the South. The concept came from African-American folktales by Joel Chandler Harris published in 1881.
As you exit the ride, there is a sign posted which highlights one of the phrases from that work, “You can’t run from trouble, there ain’t no place that far.” I find that sign, posted in “The Happiest Place on Earth,” to be somewhat ironic.
Marriage can have that same irony. It is the greatest blessing which brings some of the highest levels of happiness, hopes, dreams, and security. Yet when conflict happens, it can also bring the greatest hurt, disappointment and pain a person has ever felt.
Nothing makes this reality set in quicker than conflict. Sadly, conflict is one issue that couples often refuse to accept as a part of their fairy-tale relationship. Unresolved conflict leads both husband and wife to feel alone and isolated. It is said that at these moments, the furthest distance between two people is found in the marriage bed.
But God’s Word reveals this powerful statement in 1 Corinthians 13:7: “Love bears all things.”
True love doesn’t just bear some things. It bears ALL things. The good, the bad, and even the ugly. True love says I am willing to endure, to bear, and to believe all things.
There is no greater picture of that love than Jesus. He spoke from the cross and said these words, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34). His deep and committed love for you bears ALL your sin.
So “bear up!” Jesus calls us to love others as he has loved us. And his love is what he asks you to share with others in ALL things.
Rev. Chris Singer '91, MA '03
Trinity Klein Lutheran Church, TX