More Than a Wedding Verse

If you've ever been to a wedding, I can almost guarantee you've heard it. A bride and groom standing at the altar, the officiant's voice steady, guests leaning in, and the words from Corinthians fill the room. It's one of the most familiar passages in Scripture. So familiar, in fact, that we sometimes stop listening to what is being said. Let's be honest, half the guests are misty-eyed, one person is silently judging the flowers, someone in the back is complaining it's hot, and the couple standing up front is just hoping they don't trip, cry too hard, or forget to breathe. Over the next two days we're going to slow down 1 Corinthians 13:4-5, 7 and really sit with it. Not as something meant only for weddings, but as something meant for everyday life.

Today, we start with 1 Corinthians 13:4 "love is patient and kind." We often hear “love is patient and kind” in a moment filled with candles, music, and pretty vows, but very little mention of real-life scenarios when your patience and kindness is tested in your marriage, like the following:

• when your husband puts on the toilet paper incorrectly... it's over, not under

• deciding what’s for dinner… again… after you both say “I don’t care”

• having a full conversation and later realizing one of you was only half listening

• discovering the “clean” laundry is still sitting in the dryer

• arguing about the thermostat like it’s a personality trait

• asking nicely, then less nicely, for the same thing

Or, maybe it's more serious matters that test your patience and kindness.

• navigating illness, injury, or ongoing health concerns

• walking through grief together

• financial stress

• job changes

• handling family boundaries

• supporting one another through burnout

• learning to forgive when hurt runs deep

I used to think patience and kindness were just personality traits, something you either had or didn't. Some people are naturally patient. Some people are naturally kind. And if they're a gem, they're both patient and kind. But life has a way of revealing that patience and kindness are chosen. Especially when they're inconvenient. When going through something inconvenient or difficult it's often when frustration shows up, and kindness slips away. Not always in big, obvious ways... but in tone, timing, and how quickly you assume the worst instead of giving grace.

Love is supposed to be patient. Meaning it doesn't demand instant change. Love is supposed to be kind. Meaning it doesn't harden when patience is tested. Biblical love doesn't keep a running list of irritations, and never tells you, "you should know better by now." Thank goodness. Instead, Biblical love chooses softness when it would be easier to withdraw. That kind of love isn't weak, it's discipline (notice a lot of about being a follower of Christ is about discipline). It takes strength to stay patient. It takes intention to stay kind.

God models this for us constantly. He is patient with our growth. He is kind in our missteps. Steady even when we're inconsistent. And He invites us to love others the same way—not just on big, meaningful days like a wedding, but in the everyday moments.

SHE Walks in Faith

Ask God to shape your love to look more like His—patient when it’s hard, and kind when it's undeserved. Small acts of patience and kindness can carry more weight than we realize.

Ways to practice patient and kind love today:

• pausing before responding when emotions run high

• listening fully instead of planning your rebuttal

• giving grace when something is forgotten

• choosing a calm tone during hard conversations

• offering reassurance instead of criticism

• handling conflict without bringing up past mistakes

• helping without being asked

• speaking encouragement out loud, not just thinking it

🩷 Prayer

God, thank you for loving me with patience and kindness that I don't always earn. Help me reflect that same love to others—in my words, my reactions, and my heart. Teach me to love the way You do. Amen.