L is for Love {Blogging through the Alphabet}

Love

~a variety of different feelings, states, and attitudes that ranges from interpersonal affection to pleasure; virtue representing human kindness, compassion, affection

~or charity

~or as Pam Forster says, "not a sentimental or romantic feel-good love, but a practical, where-the-rubber-meets-the-road, but impossible-to-accomplish perfect love- the kind of love only Jesus has fully accomplished"

To think I was going to do the word "lazy" because that is how I was feeling. But then I thought it was quite selfish to choose that simply because I didn't want to really focus on something. Just wanted to put the post up and call it done. Love goes along with Kindness that I posted last week. That's another word that snuck up on me last minute. 

Interestingly, I don't know much about the word love. It's almost as if it is so overused {I love my husband, I love my house, love my car, love that song, etc) that it has lost meaning. I can just hear teenage girls {and guys, I guess} squealing how much they love some rock band/song. It's hard to distinguish what it really means; what sort of value is truly put on things that are loved.

It's also interesting that in languages other than English, there are different words that denote the level of care and affection one places on a person, thing, idea, etc. In English we have love. Oh, and like. As I think on it more, I suppose adore, admire, covet, and lust-after are words that could be used in place of love to denote the difference. But a lot of the time love is the word that's chosen. 

How many times is love in the Bible? There are a lot. But there are also loved, love's, loves, loves, liveth, loving, loving-kindness, and lovedst. When I chose the word, I was specifically thinking along the lines of what's in 1 Corinthians 13; which isn't love at all, per se; it's charity.

I'd always understood there to be three kinds of love in the Bible: Agape, philos, and eros. Agape is the love that Paul speaks of in 1 Corinthians. Charity.

1 Corinthians 13:4-8 Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; beareth all things, endureth all things. Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away.

And this is the agape love that doesn't mean the love we feel towards our family members. Not the deep-seated, in our bones and heart kind of love. No this is the love we have to humankind as a rule. Er, the love we are supposed to have. That explains why Pam calls it "not a sentimental or romantic feel-good love." That's why it's a perfect love that only God can show us through the sacrifice of his son. Can we say we love something so much that we would die for that thing, or person? Perhaps we can. But how many of us would actually follow through with that claim?

Other than my loved ones, my family and close friends, I cannot honestly say that I'd give my life for another person. And absolutely never would I give my life for an object. 

So I wouldn't give my life for another, but would I at least suffer for them; would I endure for them; would I look to their fulfillment over my own; would I think no evil of them? All very very good points for me to have a look at. These are things that I am to do for others, and not necessarily those I love with my heart. 

And if I am to treat others who are just a stranger to me, or even an enemy {I don't have any specifically that I know of, but if I did...}, how much better should I be treating my loved ones? 

These last two words have really touched me. Even now, my ds is playing a game that he is excited about. He shares with me. I really am not interested in his game, but when I ignore or avoid his enthusiasm, how am I presenting what I think of his pursuits and interests? I'm showing that I don't care. It's selfish of me to wish he would just silently play his game. {And yes, I did have that thought.} Because I love him I should be interested in things that he is interested in, simply for the reason that he is interested. 

Of course, there is much more to charity than what I've put here. There are many who have written on this topic, and much better than I. This is my submission for L is for ... for the Blogging through the Alphabet series. See more L entries at Ben and Me. Or search abcblogging in your browser.