45 And charity suffereth long, and is kind, and envieth not, and is not puffed up, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil, and rejoiceth not in iniquity but rejoiceth in the truth, beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
46 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, if ye have not charity, ye are nothing, for charity never faileth. Wherefore, cleave unto charity, which is the greatest of all, for all things must fail—
47 But charity is the pure love of Christ, and it endureth forever; and whoso is found possessed of it at the last day, it shall be well with him.
48 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, pray unto the Father with all the energy of heart, that ye may be filled with this love, which he hath bestowed upon all who are true followers of his Son, Jesus Christ; that ye may become the sons of God; that when he shall appear we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is; that we may have this hope; that we may be purified even as he is pure. Amen.
Before I start this, I want you all to know that I know that Jesus Christ lives and loves us so much. We are His hands trying to "Love one another" as He commanded us. When we show our love, we don't ask for things in return because doing kind things and loving our brothers and sisters is what Christ himself would do.
Recently, I have thought a lot about how something can lose its value if there is too much of it.
For instance, inflation. If there is inflation in an economy, the currency loses its value.
Charity is not puffed up.
The Savior's love is not an inflated love. He did not tell everyone that he loved them to become popular. He helped the lame to walk, the blind to see, the sinners to be cleansed, and the dead to live. He performed the Atonement and died and was resurrected to fulfill the plan of salvation.
Ever since I became a missionary, I have been paired up with a companion. We work together to bring people closer to Jesus Christ. We both have a set of talents and abilities, strengths and weaknesses too that make each person unique.
Right now I am in a companionship with Elder Eshiet. He and I are two peas... from two different pods. :) We are quite different and so we talk a lot about understanding each other.
He told me he noticed how positive and upbeat I was. He let me know that it was cool that I was willing to tell many people that I loved them. He told me that it was not necessarily a good thing though. He told me of how it could lose its value.
He said that if you tell too many people that you love them, then the value of what "I love you" actually means when I say it will go down. I thought about contending and I may have even contended a bit with my view of "I want everyone to feel loved." :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :)
But I really thought about what he said.
And he wasn't telling me to not tell people I love them... just not to overdo it, or inflate the love I have for people.
I am in the greatest mission in the history of life. There are so many people that have touched my life in a wonderful way and have blessed my life. They are metaphorically writing in the book of my life. Whether a person writes a sentence, or a few chapters, I am SO grateful for them being in my life, and I feel I should tell them of my appreciation. It makes me happy especially when I get to serve them or they serve me.
When I am with a group of people after a spiritual high, I usually will be more eager to tell lots that I love them. I want everyone to feel the love that I feel. However, I can give the wrong impression to some if I tell them I love them. OR, if I tell one person I love him/her, and then he/she sees me say that to 20 or 30 other people, that person might not feel like my words meant much to him/her.
Said President Thomas S. Monson,
"Said William Shakespeare, 'they do not love that do not show their love.'"
You can say "I love you" all you want, but it is when they are backed up with actions that the receiver of the love can feel the most love.
Also, it can go the other way around. If a person NEVER says "I love you," to someone he/she loves,
how will that someone know?
If I want my words to mean a lot, I should mean what I say, and say what I mean, and not throw out words like "I love you" or "I'm sorry" if I don't mean it.
Another companion of mine said that I sometimes throw out "SORRYs" like candy. He told me, if I say it once, I need to mean it then change. The word sorry doesn't need to be in every sentence I say. Even if I feel like what I say might not be what the person wants to hear.
I have learned many lessons of self-improvement and giving and receiving constructive criticism from being a missionary. I have learned lessons of repentance and forgiveness; and of people having spiritual gifts.
Each person we know and each we don't know is an individual child of our Heavenly Father. We should respect each other, be kind to each other and understand each other.
Another thing: We may only have one connection with certain people... as in, we might only see a certain person only once in your life. So, be careful what you say. You might ask yourselves "Am I a blessing or a burden?" A kid could ask, "am I being nice, or mean?"
This doesn't mean you should treat poorly those you see often and every day.
They should be the ones we try to love most.
I have relearned something else important from Elder Eshiet. Actions speak louder than words.
Dayton's Legs
I know that charity is the pure love of Christ, and charity never faileth.
Coming back to things losing value if you have too much of it... Our Savior's love is infinite and eternal and may not apply to this situation. When we receive that love, we need to show it to our brothers and sisters.
Show kindness.
I'm Trying to be like Jesus - Mormon Tabernacle Choir
I'm trying to be like Jesus.I'm following in His ways.
I'm trying to love as He did
in all that I do and say.
At times I am tempted
to make a wrong choice
But I try to listen
as the still small voice whispers
Chorus
Love one another
as Jesus loves you.
Try to show kindness
in all that you do.
Be gentle and loving
in deed and in thought;
for these are the things
Jesus taught.
I'm trying to love my neighbor.
I'm learning to serve my friends.
I watch for the day of gladness
when Jesus will come again.
I try to remember the lessons he taught
then the Holy Spirit enters into my thoughts saying:
Love one another as Jesus loves you.
Try to show kindness in all that you do.
Be gentle and loving in deed and in thought;
for these are the things Jesus taught.
Do you feel that? That's the Holy Ghost telling you that what I have said is true. :)
Remember to say your prayers and read your scriptures.
Peace be with you.
