As a young woman, I always wondered how you know when it's "real love."
As a married woman, I now wonder, "What is love?"
Now that I've experienced love expressed in every capacity, I am asking this question for us all. Someone needs to.
Why?
Because our world is failing in love.
So many of us think we "know love," but do we really?
I think we know parts of love; we know definitions; we know feelings. But, I also think we have a lot to learn - myself included.
You see, there's this problem...ask several people what love is, and you'll get different answers.
For hollywood, it seems to be a profound attraction that is ever shifting.
For the scientist, it's just chemicals in the brain and body.
For a muslim extremist, it may be Jihad.
For someone hurt, it may not even exist.
For others, "love" may be simply equated as sex.
For a Christian, it's the cross and a combination of scriptures.
Some say it's a choice.
Some say it's pain.
Some say it's a myth.
Some say it's sacrifice.
Some say it's deep friendship.
Some say it's just not worth it.
And yet, no matter what people say or believe love to be, it is the great search of our generation. People jump from relationship to relationship, from religion to religion, from place to place just searching...
FOR LOVE.
They are searching for love, but the confusion on love creates the problem. I believe there truly is ONE REAL LOVE. A love we are all looking for that's universal. And, I think it's too simple to just say it's God. Of course it's God! He created love. HE IS LOVE. But, He also created us to love - and that's the problem I think we keep running into; even after we are submerged in God's love, we are still searching for love from eachother. Deep down we know it's supposed to be there!
God's love IS ENOUGH.
And yet, it's not at the same time.
Sound blasphemous?
Let me explain...
If a Christian or person claims to know the God of Love, who is Love, and yet is no better at loving than the rest of the world, what is that saying to others?
Love is what we are created FOR.
And, love is what we are created to BE.
To be true LOVERS.
That's why I'm asking, "What is love?" And this time, we can't answer this with religion or or empty words, but we have to look in our hearts and ask...what does it look like for me to love and be loved? For the next months, I am looking deep. I want all of us to re-look at the scriptures or sayings we've heard our whole lives, and then begin to see what that looks like in ACTION, in EVERY DAY LIFE. Otherwise, it means nothing.
We need to do this.
We need to do this for ourselves.
Our relationships.
Our children.
Our neighbors.
Our future.
Our WORLD.
Stay reading to go through this journey with me...
