Welcome to Day 172 of the “Manna for the Mind” devotional! This series is about finding nourishment in the Word of God to get us through the day. In each devotional, I take a variety of scripture passages (typically 1-3 verses each) and build our understanding of what they teach via their context and connecting scripture. My goal is to help you understand how to be the type of human God created you to be. Today’s passage is 1 Corinthians 13:4-5.

1 Corinthians 13:4-5

NASB	NLT	VOICE
4 Love is patient, love is kind, it is not jealous; love does not brag, it is not arrogant.	4 Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud	4 Love is patient; love is kind. Love isn’t envious, doesn’t boast, brag, or strut about. There’s no arrogance in love;
5 It does not act disgracefully, it does not seek its own benefit; it is not provoked, does not keep an account of a wrong suffered.	5 or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged.	5 it’s never rude, crude, or indecent – it’s not self-absorbed. Love isn’t easily upset. Love doesn’t tally wrongs

An important thing Paul says here is that love isn’t irritable. How often does this ring true for you? Sometimes, we are irritated or angered by others. It could be loved ones, acquaintances, and even strangers. The difficult part of it all – we often don’t know why. Not all irritability stems from our inner selfish or sinful motives. However, our irritation should never lead us to mistreat others.

Often, our irritability comes from a love of perfection, a deep desire for programs, plans, meetings, and structures to run perfectly. When things to don’t run with perfection, we often have an angry outburst towards those who intentionally or unintentionally caused it or those who are just around us when that imperfect moment happens. As a perfectionist myself, it comes from an inner sense of control. One that I believe lies within all of us. We want to keep as much as we can within our tangible grasp because our world moves at such a fast-paced speed that it feels like it could be lost in a moment. I’ll lash out to those around me when that perfectionistic mindset is severed.

When we find ourselves irritated, it helps to remember that perfection is only found in God. We need to love God and follow what he commands, leading us to love our fellow people. We don’t need to achieve perfection, but we need to go out and be the best version of ourselves that God created us to be. It won’t be perfect, but it will be progress. If we can go out and be 1% better than what we were yesterday, it’s  a success.

Philippians 2:4

NASB	NLT	VOICE
4 do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.	4 Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.	4 Get beyond yourselves and protecting your own interests; be sincere, and secure your neighbors’ interests first.

Before we dig into the principle taught here from Paul, let’s talk about the church in Philippi. Philippi was a cosmopolitan city. The composition of its membership reflects the great diversity the church represented, hosting people form various backgrounds and walks of life. Acts 16 gives us a glimpse at the diverse makeup of the Philippian church. There was Lydia, a Jewish convert from Asia and a wealthy businessperson. There was the slave girl, possibly a native Greek. There was a jailer serving this colony, probably a Roman. The fact that Jews, Greeks, and Romans could co-exist in one church setting was an incredible success all on its own.

With so many different backgrounds among the members, unity was possibly difficult to maintain. Although there’s no evidence that division within the church occurred, Paul needed to celebrate and safeguard its unity as a shining beacon for the whole world. Paul encourages us to be mindful against any selfishness, prejudice that might lead to dissension. A great way to avoid possible dissension is to show a genuine interest in others. While caring of yourself, take an interest in others. Find out about their passions, hopes, and dreams. Find out what makes them tick. Learn about their past. The more we do this, the more we build a community, and more we reflect God’s love and compassion to the world.

Next slice of manna: Manna for the Mind #173