By far, the most visceral human emotion. Without question the most desirable of feelings. Undeniably the most powerful of acts. From the fallen nature of man, from the darkest recesses of the heart, can arise the nature of love that within itself carries all hope that evil and anger cannot prevail. We have all said it, we have all experienced it, we have all lived it. And to those who claim they have not, it is love, without detection, that has imbued life with meaning.
As time has passed, love has encountered all things. And now it encounters a new kind of definition. One that attempts to strip it of its multifaceted meaning, none of which are trivial, as we have managed to do today.
Love has been the word used to describe what will unify all races and creeds. The one thing that can overcome the pain and anguish of the past and extinguish any wrong doings that have in our minds created the established world we see today.
But that is not so. Love itself would never place itself front and center as so many have placed it today. Love does not bind itself to our pretensions of social repair. We can claim that love itself drives us, but in reality, it's selfishness. Love has no place there.
The crescendo that we now hear and the productions we see have as a false pretense the sound and look of love. It has been the cry of the self-proclaimed protectors of the oppressed, those that are spreading this twisted message of love with the evilest of intents.
But love is not inpatient in this way. It does not rush to solve in unkind ways. Yet that is what we see happening in our social circles and in the political arena. If a person disagrees with a homosexual relationship, or stands against abortion or believes that not all masculinity is bad; like some kind of flash bomb, love is launched into the fray.
But to define love on the basis of acceptance is wrong. If someone does not agree with your belief or does not accept your lifestyle as right does not mean they don't love you. Love itself does not tally these wrongs in the way we see it done.
In this media saturated world, where hashtags mean more than the words that come after them and where pictures tell the stories. Context is sacrificed to the limited characters we can use. Not words mind you, characters.
We have celebrities and politicians that bandy around scoring fan and base points. Meanwhile, people are frenzied about the latest attention-grabbing headline that will boost a selfish agenda forward. Painful to watch.
If you Google "love definition" you'll see words like feeling, interest, pleasure and attachment used to define love. Love has been defined as being "the bigger person." That if someone is not being nice that you should be nice. Defined as taking care of what someone else wants regardless of what you want. These anemic definitions fall apart the moment someone, "not being nice to you" means they are taking from you, your dignity. Or when what "someone else wants" is an affront to you personally. Love is at its core connected inextricably to truth. It makes it's living there. And what some have done is replace words such as like, want, enjoy with love.
We all too easily claim to love things like, food, cars, cities, celebrities, movies, alcoholics drinks, songs, property and pets. And you may actually love your pooch, that may be true for some, but do you love the pooch more than your child or husband or mom? I am afraid of what some may answer.
You know what you love most. It's not expressed in words. It's expressed in what you do. A wife knows when you love the game more than her. A child knows when you love your career more than them; a friend knows that you love your status more than them. This is not debatable. We know this. To play around with the word love and throw it around does no one any good.
Valentine's Day is here. A holiday, if we can call it that, that corporations no doubt love. And they genuinely do, have you seen the Valentine’s Day market? You can buy the chocolates and flowers and cards. Live up your traditions, I am not here to mock them or belittle them. But as you do, think about what you truly love and what you say you love.
Love. It's not a word. That is the least of what it is. It's not a noun or verb and nothing else. Love is at its core an essence of God. From God comes love because God is love. And in this context alone can love be understood. To determine what love is in any other way leads to catchy phrases and memorable songs and rousing political speeches.
These though, ultimately deliver a momentary feeling of bliss that ends with the track or the end of the rally. They carry you high, and drop you when you least expect it, leaving you flailing around grasping for something more real.
Love, embodied in the person of God is patient and kind. It does not envy nor does it boast. It is never proud or seeks to dishonor others. It is not self-seeking and not easily angered. Love, embodied in the person of God does not keep a record of wrongs or delight in evil. Love embodied in the person of God rejoices in the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.
We live this life seeking that true Love. We have tried to put a spin on it, make it trendy and even put a hashtag on it. But we fail to recognize the source of love. Today is a good day to start finding a better meaning of love. Or beyond that, love itself.
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