Scripture Reference:
“Love is patient, love is kind… It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.” (1 Corinthians 13:4, 7-8)
Reflection:
When I was in my twenties, I asked an elderly couple who had been married for more than sixty years what I thought was a simple question.
“What’s the secret to loving the same woman for a lifetime?”
I expected the husband to say something like, communication, trust, forgiveness, or never stop dating each other.
Instead, he smiled, looked at his wife with the same tenderness you would expect from a newlywed, and quietly said,
“You don’t love the same woman.”
His answer caught me completely off guard.
He continued,
“She changes every few years. If you don’t update the way you love her, you’ll lose her.”
Then he explained.
“I could spend my life complaining that she isn’t the woman I married… or I could choose to fall in love with the woman she is becoming.”
He said the young woman he married at twenty-two wasn’t the same woman at thirty. Motherhood had changed her. Life’s hardships had shaped her. The joys, disappointments, victories, and losses had all left their mark.
“At forty,” he said, “she needed respect more than romance.”
“At fifty, she needed partnership more than passion.”
“At sixty, she needed my presence more than my promises.”
Then he paused.
“Every time she changed, I had a choice.”
Those words have stayed with me for a lifetime.
The truth is, none of us remain the same. Time changes us. Trials mature us. God uses every season of life to mold us into the people He is creating us to be. Marriage isn’t about holding on to who someone used to be. It’s about faithfully loving who they are today while encouraging who they are becoming tomorrow.
That isn’t just true in marriage—it is how God loves us.
Imagine if God only loved the person we were when we first came to Him. Instead, He patiently walks with us through every season, every failure, every victory, and every transformation. His love grows us, restores us, and never gives up on us.
As followers of Christ, we are called to love others with that same kind of faithful love.
The elderly husband left me with one final thought that I have never forgotten:
“The biggest mistake people make is thinking love stays the same. They fall in love once… then stop paying attention.”
“Loving someone for a lifetime means staying curious about them.”
“Keep learning them.”
“Keep noticing them.”
“Keep choosing them.”
That is exactly what Christ does for us every single day.
May we never stop noticing the people God has entrusted to us. May we continue to listen, encourage, forgive, and love them through every season of life. Lasting love isn’t built by clinging to yesterday—it’s built by faithfully embracing today.
“Lasting love isn’t found in holding on to who someone was yesterday, but in joyfully embracing who God is shaping them to become today.”
Prayer:
Heavenly Father, thank You for loving me through every season of my life. Thank You for never giving up on me as You continue to shape me into the person You created me to be.
Forgive me for the times I have expected others to remain the same instead of recognizing the work You are doing in their lives. Give me a heart that is patient, compassionate, and full of grace. Help me to truly listen, to notice the needs of those I love, and to cherish them as they grow through life’s joys and hardships.
Teach me to love as Christ loves—with a love that is steadfast, sacrificial, and faithful. Help me to encourage rather than criticize, to understand rather than judge, and to be present rather than distracted. May my words bring comfort, my actions reflect kindness, and my life point others to You.
Continue to transform my own heart as well. Mold me into a better husband, wife, parent, friend, and servant of Christ. Help me never to stop learning, growing, forgiving, and choosing the people You have entrusted to my care. May our relationships become living testimonies of Your unfailing love and grace.
Above all, may I never lose sight of the incredible love You have shown me through Jesus Christ—a love that never changes, never fails, and never lets go. I ask all these things in the precious name of Jesus. Amen.
Invitation to Embrace Jesus:
Are you searching for hope, purpose, and peace? Jesus is waiting with open arms, ready to welcome you back into His loving embrace. Whether you’ve wandered away or are seeking Him for the first time, His invitation is always there for you.
Why give your life to Jesus?
- Experience unconditional love and grace.
- Find strength in your struggles.
- Discover the purpose He has for your life.
If you’re ready to take that step, click the link below to learn more about how to invite Jesus into your heart and life.
Click Here to Begin Your Journey!
No matter where you are on your path, remember: it’s never too late to return to the One who loves you most.
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Rob Lavallee
Scriptural Seeds Ministries