What is love?
February gets me thinking a lot about the subject of love. I mean, it’s Valentine’s month after all. The Hallmark symbols of love are everywhere....
February gets me thinking a lot about the subject of love. I mean, it’s Valentine’s month after all. The Hallmark symbols of love are everywhere.
I’ve never really liked Valentine’s Day. In fact, I’d go as far as saying I’m actually pretty anti-Valentine’s. (Maybe there’s room for God to redeem it for me).
Maybe because this month forces me to contemplate love in my own life. That it has been and is messy.
I’ve struggled with parental love. Having to earn it. Having to deal with it being withheld when I disappointed. That gave me a skewed view of what love is all about.
I’ve struggled with what martial love looks like. Partly because of my upbringing. Partly because of other traumas. And partly because my partner has a hard time speaking my love language.
I’ve even struggled with the concept of unconditional love from God. That seems like such a foreign concept to me. But I guess that shows the limits and fallibility of human love.
No, pure love looks a lot different than the pictures and sentiments we see and hear in love month.
If I look at the greatest love story of all - the story of Jesus - love is not the picture you find on the big screen in Hollywood.
Love is humble servanthood. Stooping low to uplift others.
Love is sacrificial. Even unto death.
Love is less focus on me and more focus on others.
I need love like that in my life. I need to show love like that in my life. And the only way to do that is to embrace the love of God and let it flow out of you.
Yes, my prayer this month is to let me learn to love like that. And receive love like that.
“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.”
1 Corinthians 13: 4-8