ARE YOU ON GOOD TERMS WITH LOVE?
ARE YOU ON GOOD TERMS WITH LOVE? This is admittedly an odd question. Yet if you think about it, it is not an unnecessary one. We humans may believe in the existence of love and yet not be fully convinced of its usefulness to us. We may consider love to be impractical, or even foolish at times. And I am not talking about those fictional pseudo versions of love, of lust, or neediness, that can masquerade as love. I mean genuine, selfless love. It has become clear to me that a human’s relationship with love mirrors to an astonishing degree their relationship with God. Some people passionately deny both the existence of a god factor and love. They seek to account for things God and love are typically associated with with basic physiological functions. There are people who adamantly declare a belief in the existence of a God(s) and yet do not think that God could possibly love them and so cannot feel any love for them. These people likewise believe in the existence of love and yet do not feel that being loved and giving love is something they can experience. Then there are people who not only think there is such a thing as a God, but have come to have experiences with what they take to be God. And those experiences universally include an experience of a singular kind of love. The people always have the most significant relationship with love. They expect to be loved, and when they are not loved by some people, they are most prone to forgive the withholding of love. And they are the people most likely to not only feel love for others, but insist on acting out their love, even when it will cost them to do so. With this reality in mind it is obvious that a connection with God is of paramount importance. Having the correct ideas/dogma about God are important, but they are not what generates a person’s relationship with love. Only actual experience with God does that. By the way, I do not mean to say people who do not believe in a god do not love. All humans experience God, whether they think a God exists or not. So all human are capable of feeling loved and giving love. In fact, there are believers in God I know who love and feel loved very little, and there are people I know who are complete atheists who have given out genuine love to many others. And here is an odd thing; I have known people who curmudgeonly choose not to believe in the existence of love who even so have lots of love to give. Even so, the psychological equation here still holds. A person’s belief in God mirrors their belief in love. © John Brusseau, 7/1/2025
This is my current perspective. I have a very limited and impoverished relationship with love but it is growing exponentially as I trust in God is embraced in the circumstances He brings to me.
I was reading 1 Corinthians chapter 13 and much came to light that I had not known before because I had no frame of reference when I previously read it. I had only a small amount of encounters with God and it took Him many years to open me up to trust.
Paul, the author, is very clear that anything, I repeat, ANYTHING we do that is not from a love motive is NOTHING, makes us NOTHING, brings more NOTHING.
No matter how good it looks we are not able to create, heal, change, free or conquer without love or you can say "God" who is love.
We attach love to so much that is truly selfish and fear driven and compulsive in nature. We make laws and break laws all in the name of love. We call our anger of shame driven discipline of our children love when it is really our brokenness coming out in very selfish, abusive behavior.
Our pride and insecurity will have us sacrifice for others just for approval and we'll be damned if we'll admit it
We speak our truth or values to control through condemnation or fear and call it love or righteousness
What I found at the end or the chapter brought it home to me in a wonderful way I didn't see before. Paul says that in the current time we see as if in a mirror which I used to think meant we don't see ourself clearly but it's more than that. The world is our mirror. We typically see ourselves as we are treated or how others say we should be. Paul goes on to say that after we see Jesus we will see face to face, seeing ourselves and others accurately.
How does that happen? Paul says we get it in installments as we come to see ourselves through walking with God. He, through His patient, merciful and abundant love shows us our heart, where we have been wounded and are holding on to fear and pride. As we exchange that for trust we start to have our eyes opened to what He created us to be, how we were made to express God's love to the world. Then we will be in Harmony with His plan and we will be SOMETHING, truly living! If we are acting out of our fear driven agendas we are not in harmony with anyone other then people who are just as sick. No life there no matter how comfortable you may feel after you have gotten your delusional drug.
In closing, Every day God is helping me face my fears and I am learning to be patient trusting Him to change me. My relationship with love.
Beautiful Nancy. Timely. Your transparency is so precious💗