Love - the most misunderstood word in the English language?

 Valentine's Day is coming for those of you who celebrate those kinds of things.  Around February 14th each year, people celebrate their love for each other.  However this seems odd given that we have a divorce rate that some estimate to be around 40 - 50 percent.  The way that this is calculated is sometimes off, but think about this - which is more common - a 40 or 50th anniversary celebration or a divorce proceeding?  This is a bit startling. 

I remember back when I was young working through the conceptions then of what love was.  Today we see a progression of that movement to redefine love.  Let me explain what I mean and let me start with a biblical definition of love.

Love : the willingness to put someone else's needs before self.  There is a love for friends, family, spouses, but ultimately love is defined in God.  And God loved us without us being able to contribute to his needs.  This definition does not mean we do not love self - in fact we are to love others as we love ourselves.  The biblical understanding of love reminds us that we have a natural love of self that we need to overcome to serve.

Our culture takes this and turns it on its head.  We are to love self first.  In fact all other forms of love center on our need to love ourselves.  If we don't feel love, we need to end the relationship and find someone who makes our feelings better.  What is the impact when we center love on ourselves instead of in God and his definition?  I think I will only mention three things.  One - we become hyper focused on meeting our own needs instead of service.  Two - we self-justify our own bad actions and behaviors because we have an excuse based on our own needs not being met.  Three - we fail to realize accountability in love.

These three things cause immense problems for us when we are learning how to build relationships and impact not only marital love, but love in the body of Christ, and even love for the world around us.  May we as the Church of Jesus Christ keep focused on what true love is and how we are to imitate it.  

Old Songs for a New Year

 As I have been reflecting on my life and our churches' life and all that has gone on in the past year in our world, I have been thinking about that songs that I sang growing up and all of the meaning that they have.  As I thought about this I thought I would occasionally share one of these songs' lyrics as a way to encourage you and remind us all that our faith is a faith that endures through time and circumstance because the One in whom our faith is placed does not change.  

The Solid Rock (text: Edward Mote)

My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and righteousness;
I dare not trust the sweetest frame, but wholly lean on Jesus name.

When darkness veils His lovely face, I rest on His unchanging grace;

In every high and stormy gale, My anchor holds within the veil.

His oath, His covenant, His blood, support me in the whelming flood;

When all around my soul gives way, he then is all my hope and stay.

When He shall come with trumpet sound, O may I then in Him be found: 

Dressed in His righteousness alone, Faultless to stand before the throne.

Chorus: On Christ the Solid Rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand.

All other ground is sinking sand.