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Love is Not Rude

About once a month I go into our preschool and teach a lesson to a group of 2-5 year olds. There are about 60 of them, so question and answer time can be pretty fun. This year I am taking them through 1 Corinthians 13 and we're learning about love.

Love is patient, love is kind, it does not envy, it does not brag or boast.                          ~1 Corinthians 13

The next part of the verse we’re learning is ‘love is not rude.’

I asked them what it meant to be rude. One kid said when you blow someone up with a tank. Yes, I suppose that would qualify as rude. 

Another way to say it would be that love does not dishonor. This means that we should treat people with respect and show them, by what we say and do, that we value them.

I asked a volunteer to squeeze a tube of toothpaste for me until the tube was empty. I picked a sweet young girl, who squeezed until the tube was empty. Then I said, "Now I need you to put all the toothpaste back in." And I just looked at her, as if waiting for her to try.  

She looked back at me as if I was the biggest idiot in the room. Who knows; it could be true. When she spoke the obvious and said it couldn't e put back in, another kid offered that we could use duct tape. Someone's been working with their dad.

I acknowledged that the tube of toothpaste could not be reused and the toothpaste would not go back in. Then I explained;

It’s too late, isn’t it? This is just like when we are rude to someone. When we say something that isn’t kind, we can’t put those words back in our mouths. Even when we apologize, people will still remember that we said it.

I think Jesus wants us to show we love people by being careful about what we say, so we’re not rude or mean to people.

Love is patient, love is kind, it does not envy, it does not brag or boast. It is not rude.    ~1 Corinthians 13



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