I'm a mother to four delightful mischief-makers. I love them very much.
There are times when I indulge their desire to make up stories and let their imaginations fly. It's fun, and it's part of growing up, and learning how the amazing gift of intelligence works.
I also feed and clothe my children, which may come as a relief to you. I'm teaching them to read, teaching them how numbers interact, and most importantly, teaching them how they are made in the image of God, but that they fall short. I often do this by discussing my own struggles with sin with them.
There are also times when I have to be very firm with them, because they are behaving rebelliously. In each of these different tasks, I employ different 'tones'. It's important that I use the right tone for each thing.
It would be ridiculously harsh to remind them, when they are telling fantastical stories, that there is a place for all liars in the lake of fire.
However, it would be equally foolish to encourage them while they were defiantly flouting authority.
I love my children in all these ways. Love. Quite an astonishingly powerful thing. So much bigger than the world's definition.
8/31/2007
Love
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Love is doing, not a feeling.
I would think love is both Matthew.
When it comes to our children, we feel so deeply that we are motivated into doing.
And part of love is telling them the "hard things."
This is such a precious time in your life, Libbie. You have an audience that is willing to hear. This is such a great time for teaching.
Donsands
So are you allowed to stop loving your wife if she hurts you and the emotions you feel are anger and sadness?
I think love is not about how you feel, but what you do.
"So are you allowed to stop loving your wife if she hurts you and the emotions you feel are anger and sadness?"
No, because I love Christ first and foremost. And when my emotions are not as loving as they should be for being hurt, I still have affection for and care about my wife.
On the other hand, I can give her all the treasures in the world, and even burn my body for her, and not love her.
Donsands, do you have a definition of love?
1st Corinthians 13 is a good one.
BTW, God says in Ceut. 6:1-9 to love Him with all your heart. The love has to be in the heart. And all our souls. And all our might.
Jesus said, "If anyone loves Me, He will keep My word ... He woh does not love me does not keep My words." John 14:23-24
" ..teh love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us." Rom 5:5
"We love God, because He first loved us."
Of course if this love is genuine it will produce deeds of good will.
Love is an affection from our deepest soul. It's authentic caing for someone, and that love causes the caring to take place in many ways.
Feeding the sick, tending to our family and others is various ways.
The two go hand in glove the heart of love and the loving with all our might and soul.
Donsands, you seem to see love as primarily emotional.
I would argue that this is the way the world views love.
I see nothing in scripture to indicate that love is primarily emotional (the word heart is used in scripture interchangeably with mind. In Biblical psychology, the heart was not associated with the emotions).
I think the texts you cite are useful in defining love. I would define it as:
"The active seeking of good towards a person as determined by the context of a relationship"
Love is an active seeking of good. It is doing.
If we love our Lord, we keep His commandments.
If we love our parents, we obey them.
If we love our brothers and sisters, we consider their needs and do what we can to provide for them.
We do not always feel emotion about it. Sometimes we feel resentment towards God or anger towards our family. But we must still love them by actively seeking their good.
Every Blessing in Christ
Matthew
"Donsands, you seem to see love as primarily emotional."
No. I believe those who love Christ will obey Him. And those who don't love Him, will not obey Him.
If you love Him.
We need to love Christ with our heart/mind, soul, and might/strength.
This is all equal to me Matthew.
If you do not love God with all your heart/mind, but do love Him with all your strength and soul, then you seem to think this is love.
I don't like the saying, "Love is not a feeling it's an action."
It leaves one unbalanced according to Scripture in my opinion.
There are perhaps many that are serving the Lord without any feelings of love for Him, and I hope they are serving Him.
For as I stated before, "One can give all their money to the poor, and even burn their own body, but without love it is empty and vain." 1 Corth. 13
Matthew, I recognize we are going to have to agree to disagree here.
The Scriptures have convinced me that there is an emotional love in the heart whcih goes with the love of physical exhertion and action. Without the heartfelt love, then our deeds are vain.
If love is more than action or desire to act, what is it?
"For as I stated before, "One can give all their money to the poor, and even burn their own body, but without love it is empty and vain." 1 Corth. 13" (I do not necessarilly endorse this Bible translation)
Merely doing some particular thing is not love.
One could indeed give away all ones money and sacrifice one's life, but without a wholehearted desire to surrender every part of one's being to God, there would be no love.
A person could be self-sacrificial out of pride or vanity.
Every Blessing in Christ
Matthew
"If love is more than action or desire to act, what is it?"
It's not more. It's part of.
I love Christ, because He first loved me.
His Spirit poured His love into my, and your heart.
It's part of my heart, soul, mind, spirit, and body.
It all works together this love God has granted us.
If some one is living their life out in the Church doing all sorts of things, but is doing it for his ideals and for mankind and for god, but doesn't love God, then it is in vain.
"A person could be self-sacrificial out of pride or vanity".
Yes indeed, and even be sincere, as John Wesley, and Martin Luther, before they were regenerated.
"For as I stated before, "One can give all their money to the poor, and even burn their own body, but without love it is empty and vain." 1 Corth. 13" (I do not necessarilly endorse this Bible translation)
I shouildn't have put quotes on that sentence. i simply stated that from memory, paraphrased. Sorry.
I appreciate the dialouge Matthew. Your a gracious fellow. I know my expressions can be on the crude side at times, so I apprciate your patience with me. And you're a true iron sharpener.
Blessing to you.
Don
Thanks for the kind words, Donsands.
I think my problem is I am not really seeing what exactly you think love is.
As I said above, I would define love as 'an active seeking of good toward another within the context of a relationship.'
Thus, love is two things- desire to please or serve and actually trying to please or serve.
Every Blessing in Christ
Matthew
"Thus, love is two things- desire to please or serve and actually trying to please or serve."
I agree here.
God the Holy Spirit gives us that desire, and the power and wisdom to serve. Rom. 5:5 , 2 Tim. 1:7
Love is from the heart, and with our might. Deaut. 6:5
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