Devotionals for the Heart: What makes a true friend who loves unconditionally

A Friend Loves at All Times
A devotional by Ashley Martin

“A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for a time of adversity.”

—Proverbs 17:17 (NIV)

Jetlag clung to me like fog after returning to the USA. I had only been home from Greece for 24 hours, and the reality of daily life rushed in with full force.

Piles of laundry spilled from the hamper, the refrigerator was bare, and both the dog and cat demanded attention because they had run out of food and patience. My houseplants drooped in silent thirst. My little boy craved attention, and my husband had left for a business trip at dawn. I stood in the middle of the kitchen, exhausted and emotionally frayed. “God, I feel overwhelmed and lonely right now,” I whispered in prayer. “Help me.”

Just then, my phone buzzed. It was Lindsay. “I am coming over,” her text read.

God answers like that. He knows precisely when to send the right person at exactly the right time. Lindsay understands me in ways words cannot always capture. Sometimes, her simple presence brings the calm my soul aches for. We met at Eufaula High School in Alabama. As we both taught eleventh graders, we began chatting between classes and after faculty meetings. A shared love of ‘90s music, travel, and true crime documentaries sparked our friendship, which quickly deepened. We spent every spare moment together until another relationship—my alcohol dependence—took over. I withdrew. But after I entered recovery and reached out with trembling humility, Lindsay embraced me without hesitation. Grace flowed through her, and our friendship was not only restored but transformed.

Then came the night that changed everything. The phone rang in the middle of the night, and Lindsay’s voice trembled with grief as she spoke about her 8-year-old son, Cade. He had been killed in a tragic ATV accident. I rushed to her side. In the quiet devastation of that moment, as I held her hand, she whispered through tears, “This is why you got sober.” Her words pierced through the pain. That moment bound our souls in something sacred—suffering shared, comfort offered, and love that did not wane. Two years later, when my son arrived two and a half months early, wrapped in tubes and uncertainty, Lindsay stood beside me again. She was one of the first people to cradle him with steady hands and unconditional love.

True friendship is forged not just in laughter but in the crucible of crisis. Lindsay and I have borne each other’s burdens—grief, growth, motherhood, and battles of the soul. Her love has been a steady echo of God's faithfulness in my life. Proverbs 17:17 came alive for me through her presence in my life, portraying a love that shows up, love that stays, and love that shines brightest in the darkest nights.

Lindsay's friendship has shown me the very heart of Proverbs 17:17—a living example of what it means to love unconditionally and to be there in times of trouble. The verse offers a timeless truth about the nature of authentic friendship: “A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for a time of adversity.” Written by King Solomon, this proverb is part of a larger collection of wisdom literature in the Old Testament of The Holy Bible. It is intended to guide readers in godly living, relationships, and moral decision-making.

In ancient Hebrew culture, familial bonds were central, but Solomon elevates friendship to a similar—if not deeper—place. A true friend does not just appear in moments of ease but remains constant through life’s storms. The “brother” in adversity refers not just to biological kin but to someone who rises to the occasion, stepping into a role of spiritual brotherhood when trials hit hardest.

In today's world, where relationships often suffer from busyness and surface-level connections, Proverbs 17:17 reminds us to be present, faithful, and sacrificial. True friendship means showing up when it’s inconvenient, offering a prayer when words fail, and staying when others walk away. Whether in seasons of celebration or sorrow, godly friends embody Christ-like love—steadfast and unwavering. This verse reminds us that lasting friendship is not accidental but cultivated through loyalty, compassion, and courage in the face of hardship.

Let’s Pray:

Lord, thank You for the gift of faithful friends who reflect Your love in our lives. Help me to be the kind of friend who shows up in both joy and sorrow, offering grace, strength, and presence just as You do. Teach me how to show the agape love that Jesus Christ has for us, with everyone all times. Help me to stand firm in adversity as a true reflection of Your heart for humankind. Thank You for helping me to love others like You love me. In Jesus’s Name I pray. Amen.

Song of Reflection: “My Friend” by Crystal Lewis. Listen to it here.

~*~

Author Bio:

Ashley Martin is a history teacher who has transitioned into a being a professional Christian writer and speaker. 

She felt a calling to the ministry at the age of eighteen, having known God from a young age. However, her struggle with alcoholism hindered her from pursuing this path. For nearly twenty years, Ashley taught history while battling her addiction. In 2013, she entered treatment, and at that point, the barrier between her and God finally came down.

Since then, Ashley has been sharing her story and developing her ministry. For the last nine years, Ashley has been married to her husband, West. Together, they have an eight-year-old son named Grant, and Ashley has a fourteen-year-old stepdaughter named Cameron. They call Alabama home, and they enjoy traveling the world as a family.

Nowadays, Ashley continues to teach history to middle school, high school, and college students. She also works for an online women’s ministry named Called Creatives.

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Connect with Ashley:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ashley.klages.54/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ashleymartinministry/

My email: ashleyclairemartin@gmail.com

Devotionals for the Heart: Why we should love people unconditionally

Unconditional Love and Angels Unaware
A devotional by Erin M. Handley

“Do not neglect hospitality to strangers, for by this some have entertained angels without knowing it.”–Hebrews 13:2 (NASB)

Love. It is a small yet powerful word. It is both a feeling and an action. It takes on a lot of meanings, but they are all rooted in how God loves His own. He calls His children to love others the same way He loves us: unconditionally.

Loving unconditionally can sometimes seem like a daunting task. Showing love is easy when it is mutual. When it is a shared decision between like-minded people, it rarely requires much thought.

The intention to love others is mostly instinctive when it does not feel like a burdensome task. It seems easier to love when there is a heightened level of awareness of the person or situation. It can be easier to love an individual who may be difficult to get along with when you understand the root of their contentiousness and you decide to love them beyond their flaws. 

However, in order to love unconditionally the decision must be made to show love relentlessly regardless of the person or specific situation. To love unconditionally means love is exhibited with no restrictions, no requirements, and no expectations.

The tricky thing about loving unconditionally is that sometimes we may feel like we are showing love without it being reciprocated. Committing to love others as God calls us to can sometimes seem overwhelming and tiresome. Loving unconditionally can be difficult to do when you find yourself walking away from situations feeling unappreciated or taken advantage of. It can be a hard thing to do, but doing so shows the love of Jesus Christ to those who need to see it. It is easy to talk about, but we often don’t understand what it means until we experience it firsthand.

But what about those who find themselves feeling unappreciated? They love others relentlessly without it being reciprocated. Over time, they find themselves looking for a silver lining; something to remind them of their purpose. They desire encouragement to continue loving with the heart of God even when the work can feel like it is done with no purpose.

If this resonates with you, please be encouraged by this: “Do not neglect hospitality to strangers, for by this some have entertained angels without knowing it.” (Hebrews 13:2 NASB).

It can seem hard to continue loving others during their darkest hours. But be encouraged by knowing that God sends His angels to you just when you need their presence. God’s Angels will not mistreat you. Angels will not devalue you. Angels will not allow you to feel unappreciated after they cross your path. You never know when you will entertain them, so make it a best practice to be hospitable to every person you meet. This is how we show the love of God.

Let’s Pray: Lord, you consistently show us what unconditional love is. You always to love us relentlessly. Because we see how you love us, we have the blueprint that guides us and shows us how to love others without limitations or conditions. Thank you for being patient with us as we are learning how to love others unconditionally. Thank you for being so forgiving as we sometimes don’t always love as fiercely as we should. Thank you for your gentle reminders to always love even the strangers who may be the angels you have sent our way. In Jesus’s Name we pray. Amen.

~*~
Note from Alexis: Erin’s devotional message today reminds me of this song “Angels Unaware” by Michael W. Smith. Listen to it here.

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Author Bio:

With an ever-growing desire to continually learn the Word of God and present teachings based on Biblical principles, Erin M. Handley is committed to her calling of teaching and inspiring others to ‘be more by doing more’. With this in mind, Erin mentors young women and appreciates seeing the growth and change in the lives she impacts. 

While she sincerely enjoys mentoring and speaking to young people, she is most passionate about educating and empowering women from various stages of life about Biblical Womanhood and how to live out those principles in today’s world.

For over 15 years, Erin has worked with youth and adolescents in the fields of mental and behavioral health, education, and ministry. When reflecting on her experiences in ministry and non-ministry settings, her most memorable encounters have been those that allowed her the opportunity to teach the Word of God in a way that is most relatable to the audience she served in that moment. She has enjoyed writing since her youth, but only recently felt the call to share her writing with the world.

With an undergraduate degree in English and a graduate degree in Ministry and Pastoral Counseling, Erin M. Handley has been fortunate to be able to leverage her gifts and her passions throughout her career in Education.

Aside from reading, writing, and mentoring, Erin enjoys dancing, interior design, cooking, and most other activities which allow her to utilize her creativity.

Easter Sunday: Priceless (a devotional)

Priceless
A devotional by Alexis A. Goring

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” – John 3:16 (NIV)

One beautiful day in April 2020, I was looking up information on Google about my favorite Hollywood actresses and actors.

I noticed that one of the search results asked the question about their net worth. When I clicked on it, I saw the answer (millions of dollars). I also saw the same question popped up for several more actors. Each question was clickable with a drop down menu that revealed how much each actor (male and female) was worth financially. It awed me to know how much money these celebrities made just by their famous careers on the big screen.

Before I could go too far and become completely consumed by the lifestyles of the rich and famous, God placed this question on my heart, “How much is a human worth?” And to that, He answered, “Priceless.”

The Creator of humankind is the Eternal King of the entire Universe and He is also our Heavenly Father (God) who loves us with all of His heart. In fact, He thinks that we’re worth dying for so He sent His only Son (Jesus Christ) to save our life! Read John 3:16 for details.

Thanks to Him, we have hope. Thanks to Jesus, we have a chance at eternal life! All we have to do is accept His free gift of salvation that He carried out when He died for us on the Cross. But Christ’s death was not the closing act! After three days, He rose again on a Sunday, which is now celebrated by Christians around the world and listed on calendars as “Easter Sunday.”

Thanks to the life and resurrection of Christ, all who accept Him into their heart and follow Him know that one day He will return to take us home to Heaven. Until then, we need to live for Him and be encouraged by the fact that He died to save us and He’s coming again. The Bible says that, “God is not a man, that he should lie” (Numbers 23:19 KJV). So we can trust Him when He says that He’s preparing a place for us in Heaven (John 14:3) and that He will return to take us to be with Him there forever.

Meanwhile, as we journey through this Earth and experience all the highs and lows that life brings, we need to remember this precious truth:

Famous or not, we are all precious and priceless in God’s sight. 

We are completely loved by Him.

Reflection: 

How does it feel to know that the Creator of the Universe knows you completely and loves you unconditionally?

~*~

Author Bio: 

Alexis A. Goring, founder of "God is Love" blog, is a passionate writer with a degree in Print Journalism and an MFA in Creative Writing. She loves the art of storytelling and hopes that her stories will connect readers with the enduring, forever love of Jesus Christ.

Devotionals for the Heart: God's love that was shown through a family cat

What our family cat taught us about God’s unconditional love
A devotional by Jessica Brodie

“You were my second mommy, the sweetest girl ever, and I miss you so much.”

The words, scrawled by my daughter in a tear-stained letter to our late cat, Teetee, broke my heart.

We lost our kitty-daughter, Teetee, a couple of weeks ago after her short battle with cancer. She was old—almost 17—and her passing was relatively quick and in the night at our home, a blessing for which I am grateful.

Still, our home is not the same. I still imagine her in the shadows, out of the corner of my eye as I walk from the bedroom to the kitchen… still envision her lazing happily in her favorite sunshine spot, still expect her to come prowling when I get out the cheddar cheese—her favorite snack—for breakfast.

Teetee was the absolute best cat ever—not a pet, in truth, but the Real Mom of the House. The kids might call me “Mom,” but Teetee and I knew she was really the one in charge of everyone’s welfare. After all, she was the one who knew when someone was sick, often even before we did. She’d sense the illness and come to sit by us, try her best to sleep on our head, even, if we’d let her.

If someone was sad, or worried, she’d scooch close and snuggle in, like she could somehow send her “everything will be fine” state of mind directly into us.

And she’d been with us through so much!

I found Teetee at the adoption center of a pet store back in 2003, shortly after my kitty Roxanne passed away. I was brokenhearted back then and certain I wasn’t ready for a cat for a long, long time … and then I happened by Teetee, a tiny calico relaxing among the other, more antsy felines. I couldn’t resist asking to hold her, and she came to me willingly, sniffed at me curiously, turned in a circle in my arms, and promptly fell asleep. (In other words: She picked me.)

Teetee sat with me as I sobbed during a long period of infertility; it felt like she was saying, “I understand. I can’t have babies either. Everything will be fine.”

Then, after my “miracle son” was born two years later, she’d watch me nurse, change diapers, and rock my little one long into the wee hours. We’d exchange knowing looks, Teetee and I—“We’ve got this,” we’d think at each other.

Two years and another baby, a daughter, later, and Teetee and I had settled into a pattern. She’d watch them carefully, look at me mournfully when one was wailing or tugging at her tail. We’d commiserate, mom to mom; the toddler phase was tough! She’d let them do most anything to her, too, tolerating my son’s heavy pats and allowing him to lug her here and there. She’d let my daughter dress her up with princess cloaks and baby blankets and push her around in a baby stroller.

She was with me again as I’d despair on lonely nights, through an out-of-state move, through the dissolution of my marriage and a period as a single mom, through times when I’d wonder how we’d all eat or get through. “Everything will be fine,” she’d tell me in her kitty way. Of course, she was right.

When Matt and I fell in love and planned to marry, and he came over one night to watch a movie, she claimed him as part of the family, too. She leapt onto the couch, bypassed me, and settled right down on his belly, placing one paw delicately on his chest. “You’re in,” she was saying.

As the kids went from toddler to elementary-age and now young teens, she handled their mood swings far better than I, cuddling with my daughter when my daughter would get furious with me over some perceived slight, calming her with her kitty “everything’s fine” vibe.

Now, all these years later, she’s gone, and the house feels so empty without her. I miss her cuddles and purrs, the way she’d meow “helllloooo” in the early mornings trying to wake us up, her peaceful basks in sunny spots, even her cat hair that covered every surface like putty.

She loved us fiercely. And we loved her.

Looking back, I see the love of Jesus Christ shining throughout her whole life… the way she was always there in our toughest moments; the way she never, ever left us even when we wailed or acted sassy; the way she kept us focused on the after, letting us know everything would be fine. Now I realize what she was saying: Relax. God has you, sweet angst-filled human. Don’t fuss or fear.

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid” (John 14:27 NIV).

Rest in peace, sweet Teetee. Thank you for your love, for always being there in the toughest moments, and for showing us the unconditional love of Jesus in the way you loved us.

~*~
Author Bio:

Jessica Brodie is an award-winning Christian novelist, journalist, editor, blogger, and writing coach and the recipient of the 2018 American Christian Fiction Writers Genesis Award for her novel, The Memory Garden.

She is also the editor of the South Carolina United Methodist Advocate, the oldest newspaper in Methodism, and a member of the Wholly Loved Ministries team.

Learn more about her fiction and read her faith blog at http://jessicabrodie.com.

Christmas on My Heart: Snow Angel by Davalynn Spencer

Interview with Lena Carver, main character from Davalynn Spencer’s book Snow Angel:

Alexis: Hi, Lena! Thanks for agreeing to an interview! You’re quite the character! First question: Do you think that the author of your story did a good job in telling it? Why or why not?

Lena: Yes, I think she did, because she showed grace about my disfigurement. She didn’t ridicule me for it.

Alexis: Your story is set in Colorado. Paint a picture with words of your surroundings and share your experience growing up there. What was your most favorite memory? Why?

Lena: I didn’t appreciate the colors much as a child, but as I grew up, I noticed the brilliant gold of the aspens in the fall. Even their poorer cousins, the cottonwoods, spruce up for the season. Woodsmoke flavors the crisp autumn air, and with the dropping temperatures, everything feels cozier. But Christmastime is probably my favorite because our community comes together more during that time than any other. It gives me a real sense of belonging.

Alexis: Did you expect to have a holiday romance? Why or why not?

Lena: Ha. I’ve never expected to have romance in my life, holiday or otherwise. Men don’t look at spinsters with abnormalities. But when someone came along who looked past my disfigurement, well, that caught my attention, shall we say.

Alexis: How do you like working for your physician brother as his medical assistant? Describe your day-to-day duties at work.

Lena: I’m convinced Tay went to medical school because of my childhood accident. He’d never admit it, but some things a person just knows. When he set up his practice, it was only natural for me to help him. My prospects of marriage were slim to none, Mama and Daddy had passed on, and we both needed someone. I cook and keep the house for the both of us, and help him keep the surgery clean, see that bandages and supplies are on hand, and help hold patients still when necessary. That’s a challenge, but I manage. And when I have trouble helping him set broken bones, our old buggy mare lends a hand, er, neck. Oh well, you’ll just have to read more about that particular incident.

Alexis: Are you self-conscious about your disfigurement from a childhood accident? How do you cope?

Lena: I guess you could say I’m self-conscious because of my habit of hiding it in my apron. But life goes on, right? And one must adjust, accommodate, and do the best one can. Quitting or feeling sorry for one’s self is out of the question. Self-pity merely robs us of energy and self-respect.

Alexis: Let’s talk about your hero Wil Bergman. How did you first meet him? Was your first impression of Wil good or bad? Explain.

Lena: Wil Bergman was a puzzle from the first moment I laid eyes on his broken, unconscious form being dragged through the front door. Until he scared the living daylights out of me later that night. Good thing I didn’t have my knitting needles in hand. I’m might have stabbed him.

Alexis: What is it about Wil that makes your heart believe that maybe, just maybe, love is within reach?

Lena: Unconditional. There’s no other word for it. His unconditional acceptance of me and obvious pleasure when spending time with me. Plus he can carry on a decent conversation. I couldn’t be with a man who didn’t know how to visit or laugh or hold up his end of an argument. His broad shoulders and beautiful dark eyes don’t hurt either. Don’t tell him I said his eyes were “beautiful.” It’d probably bruise his manly pride.

Alexis: Is there anything about Wil that you do not like? Share details.

Lena: If I let him, he would eat every cookie I ever baked, whether it was Christmas or not. The man eats like a mule. But I guess that means he enjoys my cooking, doesn’t it?

Alexis: What does your brother think of Wil? And does his view of him affect your own? Explain.

Lena: Tay had his reservations at the first, especially when he learned who Wil was related to. But my brother has a way of seeing deeper than a person’s skin and family, clear down into their heart. Maybe that’s what makes him a good doctor. He certainly saw through my poor attempts at hiding my feelings for Wil as well as Wil’s growing affection for me.

Alexis: What do you want readers to remember most about your story?

Lena: I want people to remember that God isn’t limited by our doubts or disappointments. He has messengers and means of delivering His blessings that we can only imagine.

Alexis: Why did Davalynn title your story “Snow Angel?”

Lena: I loved making snow angels when I was a little girl, and then, well, things happened. But who says there aren’t other kinds of snow angels?

Alexis: Thanks for the interview, Lena! Merry Christmas and God bless you.

~*~
Author Bio:

Davalynn Spencer is the award-winning author of eleven inspirational Western romance titles, both contemporary and historical. 

She is a former rodeo journalist, crime-beat reporter, and the wife and mother of professional rodeo bullfighters. 

When she’s not #lovingthecowboy, she’s wrangling Blue the Cowdog and mouse detectors Annie and Oakley.

~*~
Book Blurb for Snow Angel:

As a child, she lost something precious at Christmas. 

Twenty years later, she's about to lose her heart.

Lena Carver works as her physician brother’s medical assistant, housekeeper, and cook despite her disfigurement from a childhood accident.

Each year, the Christmas holidays come with contradictions—cherished memories of a mysterious encounter and painful recollections of a great loss. She lives with the belief that she is beyond love’s reach, until a dark-eyed cowboy arrives broken, bruised, and bent on changing her mind.

Wil Bergman wakes in a stranger’s house with a busted leg, a bullet-creased scalp, and no horse. Trail-weary, robbed, and penniless, his dreams and plans for a future are suddenly unattainable.

Forced to recuperate in the home of a country doctor, he finds himself at the mercy of a surgeon whose sister’s healing touch has power to stitch up his lonely heart and open his eyes to the impossible.

~*~
Buy Davalynn's book on Amazon

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Connect with Davalynn:
Quarterly Author Update and free ebook: http://eepurl.com/xa81D
Blog: https://davalynnspencer.com/subscribe/
Website: https://www.davalynnspencer.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorDavalynnSpencer
Twitter: https://twitter.com/davalynnspencer
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5051432.Davalynn_Spencer
Pinterest: https://pinterest.com/davalynnspencer/boards/
Amazon Author: https://amazon.com/author/davalynnspencer
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/davalynn-spencer
CAN: http://christianauthorsnetwork.com/davalynn-spencer/

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Worth 1,000 Words: Emily Ross of Dreamy Elk Photography & Design

Photo credit: Emily Ross of Dreamy Elk Photography and Design, capturing the "first look" between the now Mr. Daniel and Mrs Jennifer Sakaida who were married on April 25, 2015

"The photo I chose was Daniel's immediate reaction to seeing his bride Jennifer for the first time that day. Reactions are always different for every couple, but I remember tearing up at this one. Some guys laugh, a few cry. But Daniel promptly kissed Jennifer's hand with all the grace of a gentleman completely in love with his beautiful bride."~Emily Ross, wedding photographer

What love means to Emily Ross, the wedding photographer: 

Every wedding day is different. Yes, they all have a ceremony, they all have flowers, they all have some kind of cake.

But love is present in different ways at each wedding. Sometimes it's in the dedicated hard work friends and family put into the weeks leading up to the wedding day. Sometimes it's in the whispered moments in the dressing room or on the dance floor. Sometimes it’s in the quick hug goodbye before the newlyweds drive off into the sunset.

Love is always present in the smiles and tears of everyone involved. It's always in the hand holding between parents as they watch their baby wed the love of their life. It's always in the way the bride and groom's faces light up when they finally get to see each other. It’s always in the sweet words spoken by maid of honor and the best man.

I don't always get the chance to get to know the bride and groom very well before their wedding day, but it's always very easy to see how well loved they are by their friends and family. When I see that, I get overwhelmed with happiness for them. That makes my job so incredibly easy. That makes me love my job even more than I already do.

What love meant to Jennifer (the bride) on her wedding day and what it means to her now (as a wife):

Love on my wedding day abounded in so many sights and sounds. I saw the love on my husband-to-be's face during our first look—the sweet unfurling of his smile, the way his eyes lit up as they took me in. I saw the love of my family and friends when I walked down the aisle—all eyes on me, the realization that everyone came here for us wanting to share in our joy with laughter and tears. I saw the love in our pastor's beaming grin—the knowing look of someone who'd watched us “grow up" before his eyes. Above all, the love of Jesus Christ surrounded us: hearing the various Scripture readings, the special music, and our pastor's loving, tailored-to-us sermon stirred up so many emotions in my heart, many of which welled up in my eyes.

Now, on the other side of my wedding day, love reveals itself in so many new, small yet profound gestures. Love is when my husband cooks me breakfast even when I am being an emotionally dysfunctional basket case (which is more often than I would like). Love is when I open up my lunch box and find my meals already packed into individual servings (because my husband knows I need the help). Love is this commitment my husband lives out every day to have and to hold me, for better and for worse.

Without Jesus, the love between Daniel and me wouldn't be possible, and with every passing day, I learn more about what it means to love and to be loved. Married life has been filled with many firsts and ups and downs, but we wouldn’t have it any other way.

What love meant to Daniel as the groom on his wedding day and what it means to him now as a husband:

When I look back to our wedding day, love for me was about the future: the excitement of anticipating. Of course, I have known from day one that I loved her, but weddings are forward-looking by their very nature. Friends and family came from all over the country to see us begin our journey together; we made promises to each other and before God; and we stored away as many memories and photos as possible. Months of planning came together to celebrate the future we were yet to have.

Now, love is here in the everyday, woven into the variations the daily grind produces. Sure, we still look forward to spending the rest of our life together…but I get more satisfaction from realizing that we are spending our lives together now. There’s something beautiful about being able to love each other day in and day out as we imperfectly imitate Christ. The commitment of marriage gives us the freedom to accept each other, mistakes and all, and to bless each other daily in little ways from meal planning to going on simple dates. Maybe it’s not as “romantic” as our wedding, but I treasure this everyday companionship.

~*~

Photographer bio:

Photo credit: Emily Ross of Dreamy Elk Photography and Design

Emily is a wedding photographer based out of Austin, Texas. She’s been in the wedding industry for seven years. She is forever grateful to clients for trusting her with their special day, to her friends and family for their love and support and to God for bringing her the sweetest couples to work with. Emily loves design, the color wheel, Dr. Pepper, musicals, fancy dresses, DIY projects, her husband and Jesus, although not necessarily in that order.

Visit Emily's website to see her beautiful wedding photography and connect with this creative and brilliant photographer, www.dreamyelk.com

A Message for MOMs:

God LOVES YOU! Unconditionally & Forever!

Unconditional Love

Dear blog readers,

I hope that you will enjoy this sweet, tug-at-your-heartstrings devotional which I found online (via Our Daily Journey.org). It speaks for itself so here it is: 

“Love . . . keeps no record of being wronged” (1 Corinthians 13:4-5).

One of my school textbooks had a mother-and-son story that I still remember. The mother was a harassed housewife with so many things to do, and she expected the boy to help her. He had his own priorities in life and resented doing what the mother wanted. One day he decided to ask his mother to pay for the services rendered by him. So he prepared a bill and placed it under her pillow. It was something like this. Drawing two buckets of water from the well: 2 annas; buying groceries from the market: 3 annas; dusting the furniture: 3 annas; going to the neighbour’s home to borrow sugar: 1 anna; and so on. He could easily earn a rupee for just a day’s labour, he thought, or mother may just stop asking for his help. He went to sleep dreaming of a better future for himself either way. 

When he got up he was delighted to find a rupee coin under his pillow, but along with it was a bill. Carrying you for nine months prior to birth: nothing; giving you birth at the peril of my own life: nothing; nursing you for a year: nothing; teaching you to walk and talk: nothing; caring for you when you were sick: nothing; and so on. It was a long list but the total bill was nil. The son rushed to his mother and wept in her arms.

I Corinthians 13:4-5 says that love does not keep an account of other people’s wrongs, nor does it flaunt or boast about one’s own good deeds. But the human brain maintains a detailed log of every event in our life, records every conversation that we have had, retains every image that our eyes have captured. We can recall words that hurt us even many years after they were spoken. Nations go to war over issues that are centuries old. How convenient would it be to selectively erase our memory like that of a computer!

I Corinthians Chapter 13:1-13 talks about the great strength of love, but it also cautions us about its fragility. Resentments, grievances, ill-feelings, complaints, and hurts have no place in the record book of love.

(Note: In the old Indian currency, 16 annas made a rupee. Now one rupee is made of 100 paise.)  — Submitted by R. R., India