What is Love?

February in America is all about love - everywhere you look you see hearts, chocolate, romantic cards, and Valentine's Day specials. As a society, we're quite comfortable with the idea of romantic love. We read books about it, watch our favorite chick flicks, and enjoy the feeling that being in love brings us. But our version of love doesn't even scratch the surface of true love. In Chapter 9 of "Becoming a Proverbs 31 Woman: Learning to Lose the Intimidation," I talk about what God's love is and what it means to us. 

When we love as humans, it usually comes with conditions of some sort. Unfortunately, in our society today it means that we love until it becomes hard. When things get hard, we give up and start looking for our next "Mr. Right Now" instead of working things out with the mate we pledged ourselves to before God. Do you ever wonder how your life would be if God loved you this way? What if he loved you until you messed up and then cut you loose when you failed? 

We're so blessed that God's love is completely different from ours. One of the passages I use in the book is Psalm 103, and it sheds some light on what God's love looks like for us. Look at what David says about it in verses 11 and 12: "For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us." (NIV) God's love is bigger than we can even imagine which should give us comfort when we need it. Even if your friends and family turn away from you, God's love is there for those who fear him.

What can we take away from this as we go about our lives? Live your life for God, love him with all that you are, and he will pour his love out on you in ways you can not even think of. Let him show you just how great his love is for those who fear him. 

As you walk through the stores this month, don't buy into society's cheap version of love. I'm not saying that we shouldn't celebrate love this month - we absolutely need to celebrate, and if you're married this is a great time to show appreciation to your spouse. But don't stop with buying flowers or chocolates or going to a nice dinner; concentrate on loving him or her as God would have you love. Make God a priority in your relationship - pray together, study together, go to church together. See how your relationship grows stronger with God at its center.