Love and Marriage
September 9, 2022
According to an old song by Frank Sinatra, love and marriage go together like a horse and carriage. (If you were alive in the 1950's, you're hearing that song in your head.)
Well, the same thing applies to love and knowledge. The apostle Paul sang this song: "And this is my prayer: that your love may abound in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ" (Philippians 1:9-10 NIV).
Loving God is the same as loving my husband. I've thought of him a lot since the day we met. I give him the bigger piece of peach pie. I tell him what I think, tell him my needs, tell him I love him. I love God by telling him the same things.
Loving God is the same as loving my family. Nothing makes me happier than spending time together. Bill and I sometimes visit a grandchild at college or one getting established in an apartment. The picture shows our family at the wedding of our oldest grandchild, Rachel, now Mrs. Andrew Prinzo.
My love for God grows as I spend time with Him. So I sit before him each morning, usually at 6 a.m., to pray and read my Bible.
I recently heard of a young woman who gave a kidney to a family member waiting for a transplant. Family members sacrifice for each other. If we love God, we sacrifice time and energy to serve Him. I've taught children and adults; I've organized VBS and Sunday school and for ten years served on a church staff.
I can't say I "love" strangers walking down the street because I don't know them. And that's why I need knowledge. I need to know God in order to love Him well.
So how do I "abound in knowledge"? Well, it's the same as knowing how to teach business education, which I once did. I studied accounting and learned how to take shorthand (who remembers that?) and how to use office machines. Then I passed on that knowledge to high school students.
I study to learn about God. I read my Bible, listen to pastors and teachers and read inspirational books. And then I pass on what I learn by writing and speaking and by living out biblical principles.
Maybe we won't develop into scholars or Bible teachers, but God accepts us for who we are. We need not pass a test or join a club to impress God. Bill and I were not hired for the first jobs we applied for as teachers. They said that as a couple we might have differences that students would sense if our paths crossed in the cafeteria and school officials couldn't have that. God, however, never turns down an applicant to grow or serve as a Christian.
If you read on in scripture, Paul tells us why to grow in love and knowledge: "so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ" (Philippians 1:10-11).
We all want fruitful lives. We want to grow and show the fruit of the Spirit—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, etc. (Galatians 5:22-23). And our love for God and our knowledge of Him waters that fruit.
Think about: What inspirational book might you read to grow in love and knowledge? Whom do you admire for their love of God? Whom might you ask to be a spiritual mentor? Or if you're a mature Christian, whom might you mentor to inspire someone else to grow in the love and knowledge of God?
Love and knowledge. Yep. They go together! And in spite of the bumps, they make the ride through life so enjoyable.