A Record of Rights – by Gail Rodgers

“Love …. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.” 1 Corinthians 13:5

In the busy day-to-day of life it is challenging to keep precious relationships nurtured. It’s important to be intentional in cultivating the relationships we treasure so that they do not erode like sand slipping down the hillside.

God gives us amazing advice about what selfless love can look like.

1 Corinthians 13:5 holds a beautiful nugget for us:

“love keeps no record of wrongs”.

Every family finds irritations in one another. None of us are perfect. Yet how we decide, ahead of time, to respond to those irritations will make a world of difference in our families.

We can resent the irritations and eventually the person; we can count them and point them out and nag about them. Or we can choose to polish up the good things we see and hear and put our focus there. We can ask God for growth in patience and gentleness in both our family members and in ourselves.

Thankfulness is heart changing. Choose early to nurture a love that “keeps no record of wrongs” but finds the good and stores up a “record of rights” in your heart toward one another.

A friend of mine began a “record of rights” for her fiancée. She found the written word powerful and sometimes easier to express. She started the book without telling him and one day, when he was packing for a trip, slipped it into his suitcase. He found it when he settled into his hotel room and read the whole thing. They both love this record of rights because it now serves to help them remember those first words and feelings of love and thankfulness and it helps them choose where to focus today.

Father God, Thank you that You promise to grant me the patience and gentleness that I need day to day. Please help me to look with eyes that see the good and respond with love that polishes up the good in my loved ones. When something needs to be addressed, please help me to address it without a spontaneous outburst and with the attitude of building up our relationship. Today I ask You to help me choose to focus on the “record of rights” rather than on the things that irritate me. Please help this to be my norm long before irritations have a chance to build a wall in my heart. Thank you for Your unconditional love to me. Please supply me with Your perspective and a truly thankful heart today. In Jesus’ name I pray, amen.

Thought: Choose a relationship you treasure and focus on building it up through applying this Scripture to “keep no record of wrongs.” Ask God to show you how to address anything that truly needs to be addressed if your relationship is focusing on the record of wrongs. Talk to a mentor or a trusted friend if you need help in this.

By Gail Rodgers
Used by Permission