The greatest of these...

is LOVE! Right? Have you ever heard that before? Jesus said that the greatest thing between peace, hope, and love would have to be love. It is - isn't it?

Many times in our lives there is a disconnect between what we say and what we do. Most of the time we have an easy time saying "I love you" or "I appreciate you," but do our actions really follow the things that we say? Often, we find ourselves upset and lonely because we haven't really loved people around us well. We feel like we're doing the right thing by saying nice things, but really we haven't followed up our words with action.

Think about this - what if God looked down on the earth when it was in it's filth and sin and just yelled, "Hey! Hey everyone! Just wanted to let you know that I love you so much! I would do anything for you! I want a relationship with you!" Then - did nothing. Image how we would feel. Imagine what our lives would be like if God never demonstrated his love by sending Jesus? Where would we be?

You see, true love always comes at some cost or sacrifice. There has never been a genuine act of love given that hasn't involved some effort. Think about this - God sacrificed his Son to show us love, but what do you do? What does it look like for you to show someone love?

Maybe it means spending time with someone.
Maybe it means sacrificing your money and buying a gift.
Maybe it means answering the phone at an inconvenient time to answer the phone.

I don't know what it looks like for you to love the people around you, but I do know that it will take some sacrifice on your part.

This Christmas season don't give gifts just because it's a tradition - really think about what you're doing. Think about the sacrifice and time you are putting into showing someone you love. But, think even further out than Christmas - how can you show love and sacrifice on a daily basis? How can you show your parents or friends that you really value and appreciate them? In 2009 let's really work hard to make sure our actions make our words come to life.