Love is any of a number of emotions and experiences related to a sense of strong affection and attachment. The word love can refer to a variety of different feelings, states, and attitudes, ranging from general pleasure to intense interpersonal attraction.
As an abstract concept, love usually refers to a deep, indescribable feeling of tenderly caring for another person.
It´s a especially, devoted attachment
tender or passionate;
to take delight or pleasure in
to have a strong liking or desire of or interest in
to be pleased with
to like
I thought about what love means to me; just in general or what I connect with it- and in my mind came words, as some of you already mentioned;
faithfulness,
trustfulness,
honesty,
stability,
obedience,
submission,
devotion,
being reachable,
humbly,
to be a sure,
closeness,
not depended on feelings,
not depended on what you get out of it…
But what I want to focus on is of course not just LOVE; I mean what did the world made out of love? Love doesn´t mean a whole lot for most of the people. They think it is a feeling and if you don´t feel it anymore; you don´t love anymore or if you don´t get what you expected from somebody why should you love than?
Maybe this is the way the world sees love or how most people act. But what actually should we think? What should love mean to us? What does the bible say about love? What does it mean when God says; he loves us? What does it mean if we love him?
God spoke a lot about that theme to me through a book “The divine romance” written by Gene Edwards. Which is all about a love relationship between men and God.
With how much love he created men; with how much love he tried to win their hearts back; with how much love he always brought them out of troubles and it was pure love that made Jesus die on the cross.
But what really touched me is the story about Moses times; how the Israelites were complaining in the wilderness and were they never been satisfied with anything.
Anyways; here the passage from the book:
God says to his people:
I did not require of you your wealth nor coins of gold.
What need have I of these?
I did not ask of you that you serve me.
Do I, the mighty One, need to be waited upon? Neither did I ask of you your worship nor your prayers
nor even your obedience.
He paused. Once more a long mournful groan rose from his breast.
I have asked but this of you, that you love me…
This really bound me over, it made me thinking.. why do I actually worship God? Why do I serve him? Why do I give? Why do I do all these things?
Because I think God deserved it, he is worthy?
Because I think I have to work of my depts?
There are about thousand good reasons but all are worthless before God if I don´t do them out of love. We can pretend it is love; of course; but HE is God. He knows your heart. Who do you think you could cheat on with that? Maybe people but God sees our hearts.
To love God is our purpose of being. God created men to have fellowship; to love not to get love back, because his love is perfect; but he wanted to be loved as well. Not by force but by free choice.
That´s why he says in his word over and over again:
You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. (Deu 6:5)
Jesus combined all commandments God had given to just those:
And you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.' This [is] the first commandment. And the second, like [it, is] this: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no other commandment greater than these."(Mark 12, 30-31)
Through out the bible it is repeated over and over again that this is what God expects of us. Not to be a big server in his kingdom, not to give all we have, not to lift our hands higher than everybody else. The only thing he wants, he longs for, is your love.
And everything else will come out of this love. Because if you love you will love to spend time with that person;
if you love you will be able to give everything,
if you love you will lift your hand up and praise and worship,
if you love you will not stop loving because you didn´t get what you wanted because you will know that your God is taking care of and he will provide,
if you love you will serve with joy,
if you love your focus is not on you but on the “person” you love..
And we all were in love with some one at some time I am pretty sure everybody has such a experience; and you know how it is to just act and be in a way to please this person, to gets favor in his eyes, to make this person happy.. because if our counterpart laughs we are totally happy, if we see that person happy we are totally satisfied.
How much more if we love God? How much more will be satisfied if we really love God and give ourselves into him; try to please him…
Maybe you think how you really will be able to love him. Like I said it is not a feeling you should wait on. Love is a decision; love is more than a feeling.
You should get to know your God better; meditate on what he has done for you; who he is; what it means do be his child; what it means to spend all eternity with him. Study the whole history of men- how God created men and how he loved them, loved us all the time.
Because we are just able to love God because he loved us first!
We love Him because He first loved us.(1.John 4,19)
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