Love must be sincere. That’s what Paul says in Romans 12:9. Then he gives examples of what sincere love does. In verse 15, he says that it “rejoices with those who rejoice and mourns with those who mourn.” We can demonstrate sincere love by rejoicing with those who rejoice and mourning with those who mourn.
At the very least here, Paul is saying that love notices people and what they’re going through—the good and the bad. Love is aware of people who are rejoicing and people who are mourning. And love walks with those people in the best of times and in the worst of times.
This requires us to think beyond ourselves and look at what other people are dealing with and going through.
Rich and I have three boys and a brand-new baby girl. Audrey came into the world six weeks early and was diagnosed with Down Syndrome 36 hours after she was born. One night, when she was still in the hospital, I stood at the sink and washed dishes. I quietly wept as I washed.
One of the boys sat at the dining room table, engrossed in homework. This is the boy who often calls me “mother” and shakes my hand as a sign of affection. When I’m unable to answer his obscure trivia questions about the Napoleonic wars, he slaps his hand to his forehead and sighs, “Oh, Patricia.”
As I washed, this particular boy must have detected my muted whimper. He came up behind me and placed a tender hand on my back. I turned and he hugged me. He drew me in and whispered, “Mom, it’s gonna be okay. Audrey is great. She’s perfect for our family.”
Sincere love. It means seeing the people around us. It rejoices with those who rejoice and it mourns with those who mourn.