If you’re a Lutheran, you know we’re in the midst of Lent. That means an extra weekly church service. In keeping with the penitential mood of the season, our Pastor (who is also my husband) selected the book of Ecclesiastes for the sermon series. It’s a rather gloomy book; the “preacher” or “teacher” (reputed to be King Solomon), lists the many accomplishments of his life. He’s rich, wise, famous, successful, and has enjoyed all the pleasures available to man. Yet none of these things have truly satisfied him. He calls them all, “vanity” (or in some translations “meaningless”), no more than “chasing after the wind.”
Last week’s sermon got me thinking about a talk I once heard by James Dobson. He said when his father died, he did not remember how much money he made, or what he had achieved professionally. He didn’t think about the many “things” and comforts his father had provided for the family. He remembered the times he and his dad spent together, doing simple activities like going fishing. Those times taught him that his father cared for him and wanted to be with him. They were the kind of memories he wanted to pass down to his own children. Love is the best legacy to leave, the only one that really lasts.
In the thirteen chapter of 1 Corinthians, the apostle Paul attests to this when he says, “Love never ends: as for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease, as for knowledge, it will pass away.” Even our spiritual accomplishments are “nothing” if we don’t do them out of love.
So, like Paul, “Make love your aim.”(1 Corinthians 14:1).
How do you plan to do that this week? Send us your ideas and comments.
Lutheran Ladies Connection 