Podcast Summary: Church of the Highlands – Sunday Messages – Audio
Episode: The Most Excellent Way
Date: February 15, 2026
Speaker: Charlotte Gambill (inferred as speaker "A")

Overview

In this message, part of the Loveology series at Church of the Highlands, the speaker focuses on how to practically live out God's love in our relationships. Building on the previous week's foundation—that "God is love"—this sermon challenges listeners to examine themselves and adopt a Christ-like posture of love, guided by biblical "ancient paths." The message weaves biblical texts, personal stories, and practical applications, especially examining 1 Corinthians 13, urging self-reflection and intentional action.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Starting with Ourselves: “It’s Me, I’m the Problem”

• Story: The speaker describes finding mysterious brown plastic all over her new home, blaming her family, only to learn the source was her own disintegrating slippers.
• Application: This humorous metaphor urges listeners not to rush to judge others’ shortcomings in love, but to start by examining their own hearts and behaviors.
  • Quote (04:50):
    “As I’m about to talk about living love out, I think we all need to sit in the seat of ‘it's me, I'm the problem, it's me.’”

2. Jeremiah 6:16 – The Call to Slow Down and Seek Wisdom

• Biblical Anchor: Jeremiah 6:16 is introduced as a guiding scripture:
  • “Stand at the crossroads and look. Ask for the ancient paths and ask where the good way is and walk in it and you will find rest for your souls.”
• Insight: Listeners are encouraged to slow down before making relational decisions, to avoid operating out of emotion, haste, or pressure.
  • Quote (10:14):
    “This is saying, number one, slow down. Turn to the person next to you and say, whoa, slow down. Everything to do with living love out, everything to do with our relational world, it is so consequential..."
• Practical Takeaway: Don’t act or speak hastily in relationships—pause, reflect, and consult God's wisdom.

3. Asking for Help and Seeking the ‘Ancient Paths’

• Observation: Many are willing to ask for advice in most areas of life but resist seeking help for relationships.
  • Quote (14:03):
    “Why is it we ask for help in every other area but not our relationships?...And yet God says through Jeremiah, you're at a crossroads. Ask. And don't just ask anybody. Hello. It says ask for the ancient paths...the tried and tested paths.”
• Instruction: Look for scriptural, time-tested wisdom—do not seek advice from those on the same troubled path.

4. The Way of Love—1 Corinthians 13

• Scripture Recap (17:11):
  • “If I speak in tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal..."
• Core Message: Knowing about love (theory) is not enough; you must put it into practice (living and being love, not just doing loving acts occasionally).

Key Characteristics of Love

The speaker unpacks portions of 1 Corinthians 13, applying them practically:

• Patience:
  • Quote (21:35):
    “Love has a posture that is patient...Gritting your teeth for someone to do better...is not patience. Imagine if Christ extended that kind of patience to you and I.”
  • Impatience leads to quick, unwise decisions ("creating an Ishmael"); patience trusts in God's timing ("wait for your Isaac").
• Kindness:
  • Quote (25:04):
    “Kindness always sees the person before the problem...Jesus always saw the person, not the problem. He saw the person and his kindness let them know, ‘I see you’.”
  • Kindness is not weakness; it is truth spoken with a right spirit and tone.
• Forgiveness:
  • Personal Example (29:28):
    “I didn’t realize I was taking our marriage the wrong way...I was building a ledger of what I felt he owed me instead of realizing...it was his great forgiveness, the undeserved grace of God."
  • Forgiveness frees the giver to live as God intends, regardless of whether the other person ‘deserves’ it.
• Perseverance:
  • Quote (34:50):
    “Love keeps driving. Love changes the tire. Love puts on the window wipers. Love puts on the fog lights. Some of you people in here that been married half a minute—oh, it’s so hard. Get some snow tires....Love always perseveres."
  • Relational commitment requires adapting to changing circumstances and challenges; don’t quit prematurely.
• Honor:
  • Love does not dishonor, regardless of age or understanding—spoken especially to young people regarding their parents.

5. Action: Walk in the Way of Love

• Beyond Knowledge: Taking a ‘snapshot’ of biblical instructions is not enough—intentional walking out is required.
  • Quote (41:23):
    “You now have to walk in the way...you're going to have to stop some things coming out your mouth that before you just let roll out...Don't just ask me for the way, now I need you to walk in the way.”
• Promise of Rest: Walking in the way of love brings “rest for your souls”—relief from the exhaustion of trying to control or fix others while walking in the wrong spirit.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Self-Reflection:
  • “Before you blame your spouse, before you blame your children, before you start bringing up theories ... is there something I could fix that would help actually everything in my life be better because I’m learning to live love out first?” (05:05)
• On Decision-Making:
  • “You’re at a crossroads right now. Stop. Some of you are literally here at a crossroads about what to do with a son or a daughter, what to do in a marriage...before you just power through ... slow down.” (12:37)
• Advice on Love:
  • “Love is fluent in forgiveness.” (29:08)
  • “Forgiveness begins to take us a different direction. Forgiveness changes the atmosphere in our lives.” (31:56)
• On Grit and Perseverance:
  • “Some of you need to get some grit back in your love and persevere again. ... Don't quit now. Love never quits.” (36:53)
• The Challenge to Act:
  • “A photograph ain’t going to help you. ... Now you have to walk in the way.” (41:09)
• The Invitation and Prayer:
  • “God ... you know, in this moment where we've gone the wrong way. God, I thank you that you don't judge us and you are not impatient with us, but your arms are extended towards us ... inviting us to walk the right way and find rest for our souls.” (44:03)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• [00:00 – 05:51] Introduction, “It’s Me, I’m the Problem” story
• [05:52 – 10:50] Receiving God’s love vs. giving love, complexity of relationships
• [10:51 – 14:26] Jeremiah 6:16; “slow down” in relationships
• [14:27 – 17:20] Asking for help, seeking ancient/tried and tested paths
• [17:21 – 21:33] 1 Corinthians 13; theory vs. living out love
• [21:34 – 25:24] Patience as the posture of love
• [25:25 – 28:33] Kindness—seeing people, not just problems
• [28:34 – 34:49] Forgiveness and keeping “no record of wrongs”
• [34:50 – 41:04] Perseverance and continuing forward in love
• [41:05 – 43:04] Walking in the way; not just knowing but doing
• [43:05 – end] Prayer and invitation for God’s love and rest

Key Takeaways

• Living out love starts with self-examination before judgment of others.
• True relational health requires intentionally slowing down, seeking biblical wisdom, and asking for help.
• Knowing about love means nothing without embodying love, day in and day out.
• Patience, kindness, forgiveness, perseverance, and honor are essential marks of love.
• Walking in God’s ancient, most excellent way—the way of love—brings rest and transformation.
• It’s a daily choice to turn from old patterns toward the “more excellent way.”

Tone & Style: Conversational, humorous, and deeply practical; speaker uses self-deprecation and storytelling to take the pressure off self-righteousness and invite real change.

For anyone who hasn’t listened, this message blends relatable life experience, scripture, and motivational coaching—encouraging listeners to put theory into practice, seek God’s way, and experience relational rest and renewal.