Listen

At that time, declares the Lord, I will be the God of all the families of Israel, and they will be my people.

The Lord proclaims: The people who survived the sword found grace in the wilderness. As Israel searched for a place of rest, the Lord appeared to them from a distance: I have loved you with a love that lasts forever. And so with unfailing love, I have drawn you to myself.

Jeremiah 31:1-3

Think

Expiration dates are real. I’m talking about “use by” dates. The disappointing thing about “use by” dates is that everything could look perfectly fine. The color is the same. But the smell might be a little off… and it might taste funny. It looks fine. But it’s not fine. And it’s certainly not good.

Love portrayed in a TV series may look fine, but it’s often actually spoiled because it turns people into objects. Or the love from someone we really want to love us may feel real, but it curdles when we realize we only feel loved when we do something they like.

But God’s love is not the kind of love that looks fine but has actually gone bad. Our verses today from the prophet Jeremiah, spoken then to all the people of Israel and now to us, tell us that God’s love lasts forever. There is no expiration date on God’s love. It is unfailing.

Tasha Gibson

Pray

Loving God, thank you that your love never fails. Let your love sustain and preserve us so that we might share your love with those we meet today. Amen.

Go

Before you knew it, you were loved. Now, let the love of God help you live like you are loved today.