Scripture: Romans 5:5
And hope does not put us to shame, recipe because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.

Thought for the Day: Paul faced some pretty severe persecution throughout his ministry. These experiences helped him realize just how deep and firm his faith was—so firm in fact, that even when he was suffering physical, mental and spiritual torture, he still found hope.

His experiences also led him to a profound and meaningful understanding of love. When Paul is at his most poetic, as he is in his letter to the church in Rome, it is when he writes about love. Paul describes love as a divine gift, as the way God fills our hearts and souls with the Holy Spirit, which gives us the strength to persevere and the ability to love unconditionally, even when the status quo is protecting its position by persecuting us.

Jesus’ message of God’s universal love and forgiveness was as radical in the First Century as it is today. Loving unconditionally, even when our enemy torments us, seemingly flies in the face of human nature. “If someone hurts me, I’m going to hurt them back twice as badly!” we think. Paul though, reminds us that we are beings of love. Paul urges us to let the Holy Spirit take control of our lives. When we are filled with Spirit, we don’t retaliate, we proclaim, “God has filled my heart with love, and I know that God wants to fill your heart with love too. Put down your weapon, discard your hatred, open your mind, and let God unite us in eternal love.”

Prayer: God of boundless love, help us all discover your love within, so that we might be engines of creation, building a new way of living together in peace, prosperity, and unity. Amen.