A Labor of Love
I looked up the word labor in the dictionary: "physical or mental work, especially of a hard or fatiguing kind; toil." That's what I expected. That's probably what most people think of when they think of labor. Especially mothers. We nod our heads, and think of childbirth. Laboring for hours...sweating, panting, pushing, moaning, maybe cursing...hard work. But oh, so worth it. Everyone told me that childbirth would be the worst pain I would ever forget. They were mostly right. I've forgotten how it physically felt, but I will never forget the experience. But what I want to focus on today is a different kind of labor. It's still physical or mental work, especially of a hard or fatiguing kind...the labor of love in a marriage. I was reminded of this as I worked through my current Bible study yesterday. In 1 Thessalonians 1:3 when Paul writes to the church in Thessalonica and commends them for their labor prompted by love. First things first, though, I...