Love

In the past few days, I realized that God has been constantly bringing the certain subject of love up over the holidays. As I look back, it is really cool, because I can see times where God was trying to show me what it really means to love.

I had the opportunity to attend Chris and Anna Kay's wedding last monday, and Douglas and Cammie Allison's last month. Tim Senn performed both ceremony's and he used it as a time to share the gospel in a unique way.

First, Tim described the duties of the Christian husband and wife. Here are a few attributes of each: A husband is to forsake all others. He is supposed to be the protector and, while he should lead and make decisions, listen to the advice of his wife. A wife is supposed to honor her husband by submitting to his authority. She is to only intoxicate her husband and no other.

Ephesians 5:23-24 - "For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands."

God used this example (the love between husband and wife) as a representation of Christ's love for the church. This love isn't a romantic giddiness, but rather the devoted love that a husband has for his wife. Relationships aren't always perfect. Love isn't just a feeling. If it was there would be very few married people left.

Love, rather, is forsaking your own desires in order to put another's desires or needs first. I'm not married so I don't know from experience the intensity of that kind of love, but I am getting a better idea of love day by day.

I am currently reading a book called "Relationships" written by Tim Lane and Paul Tripp. The book starts by giving examples of the difficulties of relationships. Basically two people both wanting their own way, but it seems fair in their own eyes. They take this and run, showing the reader everything that is wrong on their side of the relationship. But instead of it being an extremely depressing book by only showing you all your failures, it encourages you with the sacrifices Christ made for us and the love that he showed us.

These things made me stop and think, first, about the sacrifice made and love shown by Christ to me, and, second, my love for Christ and others around me. It's overwhelming when you think about the love Christ has shown. His love and grace is our salvation! His love is unconditional. No matter how bad we mess up, he still loves us. And I don't love nearly as well as I should, but I thank God for his mercy and I use his example as fuel for my struggle to love as he did and does.

Thank you, Jesus, for the love and grace that you showed on the cross. I pray that you would help me to love others, even when they hurt and wrong me, as you loved me, a wretched sinner, who spit and mocked you. And may the glory of any love that comes from me by given to you, who made salvation possible. Amen.