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Our troubles can fill our prayers with love and empathy for others.
经历了困境，能让我们以爱和同理为他人祷告。
May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you. 1 Thessalonians 3:12
又愿主叫你们彼此相爱的心，并爱众人的心，都能增长、充足，如同我们爱你们一样。-帖撒罗尼迦前书3章12节
“Is God doing something new in your life?” was the question the leader asked in a group I was in recently. My friend Mindy, who is dealing with some difficult situations, responded. She told of needing patience with aging parents, stamina for her husband’s health issues, and understanding of her children and grandchildren who have not yet chosen to follow Jesus. Then she made an insightful comment that runs contrary to what we might normally think: “I believe the new thing God is doing is He’s expanding my capacity and opportunities to love.”
在最近一次的小组聚会中，带领人问道：“上帝是否正在你的生命中行什么新事呢？”我朋友明丽正面对一些难处，她回应说，她需要耐心对待年迈的父母，需要精力照顾丈夫的身体，还需要理解尚未信主的儿孙们的想法。面对这些困境，她的看法颇有洞见，可能和一般人的想法正好相反。她说：“我相信上帝正在行新事，给我有更大的能力、更多的机会去爱我的家人。”
That fits nicely with the apostle Paul’s prayer for new believers in Thessalonica: “May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else” (1 Thess. 3:12). He had taught them about Jesus but had to leave abruptly because of rioting (Acts 17:1–9). Now in his letter he encouraged them to continue to stand firm in their faith (1 Thess. 3:7–8). And he prayed that the Lord would increase their love for all.
这非常符合使徒保罗为帖撒罗尼迦初信者的祷告：“又愿主叫你们彼此相爱的心，并爱众人的心，都能增长、充足”（帖撒罗尼迦前书3章12节）。保罗向他们传讲耶稣，但因当时的动乱不得不匆匆离开（使徒行传17章1-9节） 。在信中，保罗鼓励他们继续在信心中站立得稳（帖撒罗尼迦前书3章7-8节），并为他们祷告，求主使他们爱众人的心能够增长。
During difficulties we often choose to complain and ask, Why? Or wonder, Why me? Another way to handle those times could be to ask the Lord to expand His love in our hearts and to help us take the new opportunities that come to love others.
在困难中，我们经常选择抱怨并质疑为什么？或者纳闷为何是我？但我们能选择用另一个方式面对这些困境。我们可以恳求主，让祂在我们心中的爱增长，并帮助我们把握每个新的机会来爱别人。
I’ve got my own list of things I could worry about, Lord. Change my thinking. Open my eyes to love.
主啊，我有一长串操心忧虑的事。
求祢改变我的想法，开我的眼目去关爱别人。
1 Thessalonians 3:6-13New International Version (NIV)
6 But Timothy has just now come to us from you and has brought good news about your faith and love. He has told us that you always have pleasant memories of us and that you long to see us, just as we also long to see you. 7 Therefore, brothers and sisters, in all our distress and persecution we were encouraged about you because of your faith. 8 For now we really live, since you are standing firm in the Lord. 9 How can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy we have in the presence of our God because of you? 10 Night and day we pray most earnestly that we may see you again and supply what is lacking in your faith.
11 Now may our God and Father himself and our Lord Jesus clear the way for us to come to you. 12 May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you.13 May he strengthen your hearts so that you will be blameless and holy in the presence of our God and Father when our Lord Jesus comes with all his holy ones.
整理：于姊妹
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