Love Is (part three)

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Episode Transcript

(00:00):
Good morning, Laguna Beach. Welcomethe Stairway to Heaven. My name is
Don Schortino, pastor of Laguna BeachNetworks. And each week we look at
a song lyric or two recognize theselines of heart cries or prayers that are
coming to humanity. They would Icall themes of the Heart concerning our journey
here on earth. Life's a journeythat invites and demands us to find answers

(00:23):
beyond ourselves, giving us the loveand help we need so we can live
and love as God intended. Mydesire is to give us some help and
hope in connecting our heart cries withHeaven. Today, I want to continue
our series called Love is You know, in the way of summary, we've
been talking about that. The Biblesays the greatest is love. Love is

(00:46):
our greatest desire and need. It'sour greatest heart cry. Love is our
primary pursuit on our journey of life. It also says in the Bible that
the one who serves and love isthe greatest of all. You know,
we were made to be about loveby the God of Love. Let me
say that again. We were madeto be about love by the God of

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Love and the greatest discoveries of ourjourney of life is to be loved well
and to love others well. Andthis becomes the classroom of life. And
all through life we learn so muchabout love, what love is, and
what love is not. But thisis both a vertical love and a horizontal

(01:30):
love. A vertical love being lovedby God, a spiritual connection with the
God of love, and a horizontallove being loved by others. You know,
when we first start our journey hereon earth, it's a horizontal connection
with love and our families, ourparents, our loved ones, friends,

(01:52):
teachers, and we just go outinto the bigger world as we grow older
and friends and lovers and such.But then, you know, it becomes
something that we crave, this thingcalled love, but it's something that becomes
difficult and challenging, even hurtful,you know. So we have to learn

(02:14):
how to be loved well and sowe can have a reference and a resource
to love others well. And sohere's a song we've been using as our
series song, I Want to KnowWhat Love Is. It's a great song
by Foreign Earth Classic and here's theultimate heart cry, I want to know
what love is. I want youto show me. I want to feel

(02:37):
what love is. I know youcan show me, and so you can
see that we're really need to reachout beyond ourselves to discover what love us
and to meet that deepest heart cryin our life. So enjoy this song.
It'll set the stage for the restof the talk today. I've gotta

(03:09):
take a little time, a littletime to think things over. I better
read between the lines in case Ineeded when I'm molder. This mountain I

(03:46):
must climb feels like a whirl uponmy shoulder. Through the clouds, I
see love shine it. She flewwovers life, CRUs cool blue in mind.

(04:08):
There's been heartaching paiin. I don'tknow if I can find sit again,
can't now I've traveled so far,change as Lowe. I want to

(04:30):
know what love is. I wantyou to show me. I want to
deal with love it I don't.You can't shove me. I want to

(05:03):
take a little time, a littletime. Look around me. I've gotten
now it looks like love spliphone me. In my life. There's been hota

(05:28):
campaign. I don't know if Ican face it again. I can't stop
now, I've traveled so far change. I want to know what I want

(05:56):
you to show me. I wantto be with love. I know you
get shot. I want to knowwhere I want to show. I want

(06:25):
to feel. You can't shows.I'm hearing so much. You just can't

(06:56):
hide. I like that. Let'stalk about love. I want to know

(07:46):
what love is, the love thatyou feel inside. I want you to
show me so beautiful. And that'show it really works. We need others
to really show us what love is, and and ultimately ultimately God, because
he is the God of love.And so what we're doing in this series

(08:07):
is going through the love chapter.First Corinthians thirteen, Apostle Paul, under
the inspiration of Heaven of God,tells us what love is, and go
through the chapter real quick today.Love is patient, Love is kind.
It does not envy, does notboast. It is not proud. It

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does not dishonor others. It isnot self seeking, It is not easily
angered. It keeps no records ofwrong. Love does not delight in evil,
but rejoices with the truth. Italways protects, always, trust,
always hopes, always perseveres. Lovenever fails. And now these three remain

(08:50):
faith, hope, and love.But the greatest of these is love.
So each week we'll look at oneor two of these qualities or expression of
love that are in this chapter.And today we're going to look at two
of them, particularly patience and kindness. Love is patient and love is kind

(09:11):
be just read. So let's lookat this a little bit together. You
know, love is patient and loveis kind. Patient is being able to
accept or tolerate delays, problems,or sufferings without becoming annoyed or anxious.
That's a good definition for patience,able to accept or tolerate delays, problems,

(09:33):
or suffering without being annoyed or anxious. Here's a definition of kindness.
Kindness is of behavior quality of beingfriendly, generous, and considerate a person's
pleasant disposition, and concern and considerationfor others. It is considered a virtue

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and is recognized as a value inmany cultures and religion. Very important.
It's a great, great expression oflove, both of these, being patient
and being kind. You know,and we said it many times. Love
is a choice. Love is achoice. You know, we have the
ongoing choice to receive love and togive love every day, hundreds of times

(10:20):
throughout the day. You know,patience and kindness are two expressions of love.
When patience and kindness are working ina relationship, they'll be health and
safety, acceptance, forgiveness, growthin the relationship. It'll work, it'll
it'll be a working, functional,healthy relationship. You know, patience and

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kindness go hand in hand. Ifwe're impatient, we will have a hard
time being kind. I want tosay that again, if we're impatient,
we'll have a hard time being kind. Patience gives us peace inside to accept
another even if we disagree with them. I want to say that one more

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time. Patience gives us peace insideto accept another even if we disagree with
them. Kindness is giving another agift. Kindness is love in action,
something you choose to do. It'sa practical expression of love. It's a
visible and active very much so,it's visible and active, not just emotional.

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And so these are choices and theseare gifts at the same time we
can give another. You know,I find myself when I'm so busy and
so full of emotion and having processedmy emotion every day, I need to
do that. And when I'm full, when i'm just under it, I

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become very impatient. When I'm tired, I become impatient, and so these
are barometers for me. Listen tomy heart. My heart is full of
emotion and there's a lot of noiseinside of me. I have to be
still and quiet, have to emptymy heart at the surrender those emotions so
that I could be filled again withGod's love. And then and then I'll

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have peace, and then I'll bepostured properly to be kind and to be
patient with others. You know,here's a few reasons why we should be
patient and kind to others. Firstly, we should be patient and kind to
others because God is to us,and this becomes the greatest reference and resource

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for us of love. God islove, and he loves us unconditionally,
unfailing, and God is patient withus, and he's kind to us.
And so the more we're aware ofGod's kindness, his love, expressed his
patience to us, the qualities oflove that God has in our relationship,

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more we're aware of that, themore than we could be aware to give
that to others. God's been kindto me, he's been patient to me,
then I'm going to do that toothers. We should be patient and
kind to others because we want othersto be patient and kind to us as
well. So the Bible says,when you have the opportunity to be kind,

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be spontaneous and do it. Seewhen you have the opportunity and if
you think about it all through theday, we have the opportunities to be
kind to another person, it's soeasy to be quick and sure it's it's
just so impersonal and it's really certainlysomething that we're not giving a gift to

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another when we're just quick with them, when we're not present with other people,
when we're present before other people,when we're able to give the gift
of our full attention to another person, then we can really operate in this
kindness and this patience, and wecan give another a gift. You know.

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Here's the ways that we can considerhow to be patient and kind to
others. You know, remember whenothers have been patient and kind to you,
and so we need to dowal thosethings up, you know, again
and again be mindful others have beenpatient and kind to me. You know.
We need to make it to bea daily prayer for God to help

(14:24):
us to be kind to others.You know, Also to look around and
be mindful of the many opportunities.Each day we have to be patient and
kind to another you know, weneed to do a daily inventory to be
encouraged when you are patient and kind. Also own up when you are not
patient and kind, you know,ask forgiveness to another person. You know,

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I just need to tell you thatwas not a good response I gave
you. I was quick and sure, I was not patient with you,
and I'm sorry. And when wedo that, when we humble ourselves to
do that, guess while, thathelps us to be more mindful of it,
because none of us like to haveto own up to things and say

(15:09):
I'm sorry all the time. Sowe learned from that, you know,
we learn and we remember not todo that again. You know. Remember,
our world is filled with people whoneed us to be patient and kind.
I want to say that one moretime. Our world is filled with
people who need us to be patientand kind. You know. Remember the

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number one enemy of kindness is business. You know. My office is downtown
here in Laguna Beach, and it'skind of like a fish bowl. It's
a storefront next to Shirley's Bagels.And we have opened our hearts and the
community, our church certainly for everyoneto be part of us, and the
homeless have found a home in Networkscommunity church. And so I get in

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my office early, a very productivein the morning, and from seven seven
thirty on just people are constantly comingin and just wanting to say hi or
ask or something, and uh,I have a choice every morning, you
know, it's my productive time.And uh, you know, the first
reaction is you're you're coming into myspace and you're interrupting me. How dare

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you? And then I remember thisis someone who's important and they need kindness
today, just like I need kindnesstoday. So I've learned not to see
people as an intrusion or invasion inmy space and time, but to see
them as a as a an opportunityto give another a gift of love.

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And it just keeps me connected toGod and the resource that He wants to
give me so I can be likehim here on earth. You know,
Uh, this is a good toolthat I found. When confronted with a
person who pushes your buttons, breathein patience and exhale kindness. When I

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say that again, when you're confrontedwith a person who pushes your buttons for
whatever reason, you breathe in patienceand exhale kindness. That's a good,
good, mindful exercise to be aboutto incorporate in our lives, isn't that.
So here's a great song that reallymeans a lot to me by Natalie

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Merchant Kindness and Generous. You know, we were in a season in a
church serving and we had a newassignment coming and they gave us a party
and this song. They made avideo out and listen to the lyrics.
You've been so kind and generous.I don't know how you keep on giving
for your kindness. I'm in debtto you and I never could have come

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this far without you for everything you'vedone. You know, I'm bound.
I'm bound. Thank you for it. It's such a beautiful song. It's
just an expression of the heart thathas received from another and then telling that
other person thank you so much.It was a very powerful video, an

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expression of love to me and mywife, and we never forget that,
and so we've learned to be aboutthat same kind of reciprocation telling another thank
you, thank you, thank youfor being kind, generous. Enjoy this
song and love and love, lovelove. Hugh Fan so kind of Jan

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I don't know. Keep on inback for your kindness and dirty for yourself,
lastness, my admiration for rethy thing. You know, I'm I'm bounder.

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Thank you for lie you so gender, I don't know, keep on

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giving, kind siding, tempting,and that this far without you play.

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You know, I'm bound to thankyou for it than lie lovel lie Oh

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so many gets you someone bank.I want to thank you, generous team
and the honest team. And youcan't pay. I want to bank.
It s got to spend money back. I want to thank you, thank

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you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you. So

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I hope this was helpful and we'regonna just go week by week for a
number of weeks going through this lovechapter. Love is Patient and Kind was
our focus for today, and praythat you'd be mindful this week and that
you would connect with God and allowyourself to be loved well by God.
And the fruits of that love willcome out in the way of you being

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peaceful, patient and kind in allyour relationships, and it will become something
that you'll be aware of an everincreasing way. Your capacity to be kind
and patient will will just be enlargedand you'll give many gifts to many people,
So have a great week. Itwas great to talk with you today
and I want to personally be availableto offer friendship and help anyone who needs

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some. Feel free to call meat nine four nine three two eight seven
two three zero, or come andvisit us on a Sunday morning at the
Women's Club just behind Ralph's Supermarket.We have a community breakfast at nine o'clock
and then ten o'clock we have ourchurch service, where a Christian community in
Laguna Beach wanting to be followers ofJesus, making him visible and relevant to

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our city and beyond. Look forwardto talking with you next Sunday, seven
thirty am our next Stairway to Heavenbroadcast. Also come to our two nonprofit
stores in Laguna Beach, Laguna Exchangeon the corner of Anita and PC and
Treasures of Laguna on Broadway. Profitsfrom the stores help us help people in

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Laguna come into a new season oflife. Have a great week.