In one of my post I was talking about my ‘every morning’, how I begin my day. Then I heard me say to the Lord, “I love you. As much as I know what this word means and how to go about doing it – I love you.” Strange? Perhaps but I did find the words totally spot on… it’s what I think, it’s what I believe, it’s an important quality that I want to grow in so that I am acting… loving. We all need to consider what we mean when we tell the Lord we love Him, as well as what we mean when we tell others.
More precisely, we all need to know what it is we are saying when we use those three little words – I love you – regardless of the recipient. I sincerely hope they aren’t throwaway words, words you say to others but there really isn’t any substance to them. For some people it’s more of a careless way of placating someone else. At other times it may mean that you are important in and to my life. And yes, how you say and what you mean by those words varies according to who the recipient is.
Perhaps before discovering what love is we should look at what love isn’t. For example, among the many aspects love is, it isn’t afraid – perfect love casts out fear (1John 4:18) thus we see that it is strong and fearless. So next question: is this how you would characterize your love for the Lord? Are you a bold witness to Who He is in your life? Another aspect that doesn’t describe love is, it doesn’t mean that you are a floor mat that anyone can step on. Love isn’t weak or insignificant. What about you? According to Paul, (1Corinthians 13:13) the greatest of these (power forces) is love; stronger than faith, stronger than hope. Does your demonstration of love act this way? If so then a floor mat it can’t be.
This is just a very quick, superficial study on love and what it isn’t. My point is that you need to know your definitions, especially related to the Lord and your relationship with Him. Never consider that love is unimportant, never underestimate the height or depth of love (Romans 8:38-39). And never forget the love of the Father, who was willing to sacrifice His Son for us (John 3:16) and the Son’s love that He was willing to be sacrificed for us. Love is strong and Love really never fails and even though we do, we still need to know what we mean when we say – I love you. Loving the Lord means knowing and continuing to grow in Who He is and how He displays His love.
