Rollercoaster of Love...

Once again, I am stuck thinking about love. God and love. After all this time, you'd think that I'd becoming to more of an understanding. Alas, I definately find the opposite. The more and more that I seek true love, love as intending by God, the more I find I am confused. And I'm happy and I'm sad all at the same time. It's a roller coaster.

So, of love, most of us are familiar with the following biblical definition:

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rud, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delieght in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.

These familiar words have been said so often that it becomes easy to forget the weight of what they really saying. What do they mean to you?

I try to stop and think about that occaisionally. In a words where loving someone or being in love seems so much more hightened an experience that what I have practically lived through myself, I wonder how we become sidetracked into viewing infatuation as love. But tonight, I don't want to dwell on that.

Tonight I want to site and think about practical Godly love. Love than may orignate as an interest or desire and has to move forward into something more. Love that is a choice, love that is a sacrifice, love that is without fear. Love that means more. How does it work?

I am absolutely convinced that loving someone takes a concious effort. You have to be able to be aware of yourself and of them, and you have to learn to be gracious, patient, and to truly love them as God intented. To follow God is a choice, so therefore, doesn't it just make sense that love should be a choice too. Yes, of course, faith does also come with emotion and being in the Spirit, but sometimes I wonder if we don't spend so much time in the emotion of faith that we forget to be practical about it. To make the same point, we do the same with love.

Those who are long term readers know that I often weigh up what love really means today. We are so wrapped up in thunderbolts and fantasy that we forget they don't last forever. Yes, you may feel that way when you first meet someone, but at some point there has to be something that keeps generating the sparks. Something more substantial. And that's where we have to start making choices.

Maybe I just need to understand practical love.