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I just finished reading my devotional this morning and the scripture that it was discussing is one that I feel most people are familiar with-1 Corinthians 13:4-8.

In this passage Paul is sharing what love is. I have heard this verse hundreds of times, it was even read at my wedding by one of my high school friends.

The author of the devotional shared something that I had never even considered. The challenge of replacing ‘love’ with his name and seeing how he measured up had been posed to him. I immediately wondered how I might fare in this same test.

Chris is patient. Nope. Not at all. Just ask my wife or kids. I seriously struggle with waiting. Like a lot.

Chris is kind. I really do try my best at this one. I try to treat others how I want to be treated. I don’t always succeed, but I continue to try.

Chris does not envy/does not boast/is not proud. This is another tough one. I do try to stay content with what I have, but I falter often. I try to keep my thoughts about myself and what I do in check. I am proud of what I have accomplished in my life, but I also know that I would not be where I am at without Christ’s influence in my life.

Chris does not dishonor others/is not self-seeking/is not easily angered/does not keep a record of wrongs. Well, this moment of self-assessment is really hitting home. In everything I do, I try to keep my focus on helping others, however, I definitely have a short fuse when it comes to my temper and I struggle letting go of wrongs against me.

Chris does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.

Chris always protects, always trusts, always hopes, and always perseveres. I have gotten a lot better about trusting God over the years as I have encountered a variety of situations and have seen Him get me through them. I do my best to keep a positive attitude and outlook. I try to continue pushing forward no matter what is going on around me.

Chris never fails. Wrong. I fail all the time. Every day. Every hour. Some of my failings are caused by conscious decisions and some are out of my control.  Some are ones I repeatedly fail at and some are first-time encounters to me. The common theme is that I fail. I fall short. But the great thing is that I get to try improve. I get to try to get better.

As we enter the New Year, I won’t set resolutions as I have in the past. They never seem to work. What I will do is keep my focus on what love is and how I am living my life accordingly.

I will keep pushing forward and I hope that when I arrive at the end of 2021, I can say that I have changed for the better in the areas that I struggle in and that I continue to nurture the areas that I feel confident in.

Life is a process. We never stop changing.

We are constantly affected by outside influences. It’s how we react to those influences that makes all the difference. Bad things will happen. I commit to getting past them and learning from them. I want to keep growing for my family, my friends, and for me.

 

Chris Kovatch is a resident of Orange County. You can reach him at news@orangeleader.com