True Love (as taught by The Princess Bride)

“This is true love—you think this happens every day?” (Westley—The Princess Bride)

Everybody longs for it. Even when people claim they're not looking for love, they are. They have a "love life," even when they aren't actively looking for a significant other. Everyone seeks love from different sources. For some, it might be the love between a husband and wife. For others, the love of parents, siblings, children, or friends. The desire to be loved is among the deepest feelings known to man. Valentine's Day (or "Singles Awareness Day") embodies this delight in being loved, or emphasizes the pain of lacking love. In this quest for true love, today's generations have lost the real definition of love. They have forgotten the source of perfect love. Instead of embracing the purest form of love, they have traded it for a substitute—the empty love of the world. All too often, people ignore the one true love they already have.

". . . true love is the greatest thing in the world. Except for a nice M.L.T., a mutton, lettuce, and tomato sandwich . . ." (Miracle Max—The Princess Bride)

Of course, the truest form of love I'm referring to is the love of Jesus the Christ. The Bible tells us the magnitude of Jesus' love for us:

• "Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends" (John 15:13).
• "But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8).
• And the famous: "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." (John 3:16, NKJV).

These three verses alone summarize the depth of God's passion for mankind, His precious creation. First, the greatest kind of love is defined (sacrificing one's life for his friends); then we see that Jesus did this for us. The last verse further demonstrates the enormity of God's love as He gave His one and only Son to die so that man might be able to live with Him forever. There is no greater love than this. 

More so, what does God get from us? For what reason would He sacrifice so much? There is nothing we can offer God that is worthy of His awesome love. That's where the completely incredible part comes in. God doesn't need us. He wants us. Jesus wants us enough to be willing to die to save our lives, and we can't ever repay him. He loves us for the sake of loving us. Not for anything we do. He doesn't tell us to go and try to live perfectly. He doesn't ask that we all die martyrs' deaths for His sake. He only asks that we believe in Him and choose to enter into a relationship with Him. He desires for us to tell others about His love for them, and how He made a way for them to live in eternity with Him (Matthew 28:19-20). He wants us to bring glory to Him in all we do (1 Corinthians 10:31). This is pure grace and true love. Sacrificial. Loving not for what He can get out of the relationship, but simply because He cares about us.

Unfortunately, our standards of a "relationship" have been so diminished from what they should be, that we often forget that a commitment is a commitment.
We can't have many lovers.
We can't play the "dating game" with God, and have a different "love" every week.

"Why didn't you wait for me?" (Westley—The Princess Bride)

Our God is a jealous God, and He will not allow His bride (Christians) to have an affair. He will not compete for our hearts. Even so, He will not force us to love Him. It would not be true love if He did. Rather, He gives us a choice. We can choose Him, or we can choose the world. What will it be?

Too often, young Christians give up on the faith, unwilling to give up the comforts and pleasures of this world in exchange for the hard life of a Christian with a mind solely devoted to bringing glory to God. In a sense, they are saying:

"I loved once . . . It worked out badly." (Buttercup—The Princess Bride)

This is not true love. "Loving" only when it is easy or one benefits, is simply not love. It's self-seeking. It lacks purity. Christians who abandon God's true love for them are having an affair. They gave their heart to God, then took it back to give to the world. Sometimes, they hit a hard time in life, and go running back to God, claiming:

"I will never doubt again." (Buttercup—The Princess Bride)

Then, as soon as their life is back on track and things get better, they turn their backs on God again. 

The classic 1 Corinthians 13 passage explains true love:

Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends.

God's love is perfect. Our love is far from perfect. Even on our best days, our love for God and those around us is imperfect. We are regularly quick-tempered, harsh, jealous, prideful, selfish, irritable, and resentful. We lack commitment. All of these are daily struggles, and they're all the opposite of love. Thank God He doesn't love us the same way we love Him.

On a human level, unfortunately, many tend to forget this true love. Since loving God is so hard, and not necessarily immediately gratifying, we turn to other substitutes, ignoring our True Love. We aren't willing to put the effort into loving God. Because of our poor attempts of love and failure to honor our commitments, we tend to settle for less than love and to act less than loving. We forget God's commands.

• "Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her" (Ephesians 5:25—italics mine).
• "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself" (Matthew 22:37-39).
• "Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you" (Matthew 5:44).

Instead of following Christ's example of Biblical love, we have come to treat love as a fleeting feeling. It comes and goes. One day we might love someone, the next we don't. One day we might love Jesus, the next we don't. Again I say, this is not true love. Love doesn't come and go. It takes work. It endures all things and never ends. It loves our enemies.

This Valentine's Day, reevaluate your love life. Even if you claim you don't have a "love life," you do. There are people that you love and who love you, even when it's not shown well. Above all, God loves you, even when you don't love Him back. Take a look around you at your loves.

• Is God your first love? Are you loving God as He has commanded? Are you remaining pure to Him, as His bride?
• What about family and friends? Are you treating them with real love? Love that is patient, kind, putting them above yourself? Love that endures the arguments and bad days, weeks, or months? Love that persists even when it isn't returned?
• Are you loving those around you by telling them the good news that they, too, have a True Love who is eager to embrace them?
• Do you show God's love even to those who hate you?

Remember what true love is. Don't simply give someone a Valentine today, but tomorrow return to bickering. Love with God's perfect love, not on your own strength. Love others like God loves you. Unconditionally. And love God most of all. He is worthy. Don't settle for a substitute. It won't fulfill your longing for love. Only God's love will fill the void.

"This is true love—you think this happens every day?" No. It does not happen every day. Only those who choose to embrace God's perfect love will experience the beauty of true love. What a privilege to have access to the single biggest thing this world longs for!

A final bit of encouragement:

"Death cannot stop true love." (Westley—The Princess Bride)

This is the truest line I've quoted from The Princess Bride today. For a Christian, death only swirls you up into the arms of your True Love. Love blossoms to its fullest in the presence of the Lover. How much more so will the purest, truest of loves be in the presence of the Divine Lover?

Happy Valentine's Day! <3

Note: All Scripture is in the English Standard Version, unless otherwise noted.

"Tu" v. "Usted"

This year, I'm taking Spanish 2. But it was actually last year during Spanish 1 that I came across what I am about to share with you.

The Spanish language has two forms of the word "you." The formal term for someone who you don't know very well is "usted" and the familiar word for close friends, family, and children is "tu." If you were standing in line at Walmart and started a conversation with the person standing behind you, you would use "usted." However, if that person had a child and if you were addressing him, you would use the "tu" form of the word "you." The same goes if you are greeting a friend or family member. "¿Comó estás tu?" "How are you?" It shows familiarity between you and is a recognition of your closeness.

If you've ever read Genesis in a Spanish Bible, you may have noticed that in the Garden of Eden when God speaks to Adam and Eve, the word he uses for "you" is translated "tu." Even in the midst of delivering their punishment for their disobedience, he still says "tu."

Think about how amazing this is. The God of the universe, who spoke and the heavens, earth, and all its inhabitants were created, the God over all the angels, the God who is the Alpha and the Omega—the beginning and the end, called Adam and Eve by such an intimate name. Later, when Jesus was speaking to the multitudes, he called them also by this name. Consider the implications of such familiarity.

Remember the cases where you use "tu?" With close friends, family, and children. When God uses this word when speaking to us, He is calling us His family, and His children. This is so amazing! Think back to the days when people came before their kings and queens with petitions. They certainly would not take the familiarity to call their king by such a term. They would instead show utmost respect and honor. They wouldn't dream of being so familiar with their king, much less to have him call them by such a name. But our King, who we also bow before on trembling knees, who is so much mightier than any earthly king, calls us "tu."

Will we live as someone so close to God that He would call us "tu?"

NOTE: Happy Spring! Stay tuned for my new blog design. :)

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day, Friends! I hope that you have had (and continue to have) a wonderful day! Last year I did a post about the meaning behind Valentine's Day. To read it, click HERE.

While you celebrate with family and loved ones, please remember the greatest act of love ever done for any of us. God gave us His only son, who was perfect, to die a horrible death to save us. That is the greatest love of all. Come on, you all know the verse, say it with me. "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." John 3:16

Please take some time to reflect on a few verses about the importance of love that I have placed below.

1 Corinthians 13 "If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.
Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away. When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways. For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known. So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love."

John 14:15 "If you love me, you will keep my commandments."

Galatians 5:22-23 "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law."

John 15:13 "Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends."

1 Corinthians 16:14 " Let all that you do be done in love."

Mark 12:30 "And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength."

Please take some time to focus on these and enjoy the rest of your day. Happy Valentine's Day!   

Two God Crazy Gals!

My friend, Marci, and I recently designed another blog called Two God Crazy Gals. We would love to have you visit, follow, and subscribe to it! Here is the link: 2Godcrazygals.blogspot.com

The newest post has a poem from a friend about love. I felt it very important and God placed it on my heart to share it with you! Click HERE to visit that post.

Smile!

As I looked for pictures of smiley faces,

this one struck me as really true for

Christians. We should be the happy, joyful,

smiling ones in this world full of

sorrow, pain, and sadness.

"Smile! Because Jesus loves you and so do I!" This was my "motto" as of a little while back—that is, until it was used on me. To start at the beginning, several months ago I got this jingle stuck in my head so, whenever anyone in my family was upset, discouraged, or sad, that is what I told them. Well, once when I was upset, my little sister told me the same thing. It didn't help. It practically only made me madder for some reason. Anyways, I didn't use that saying with anyone again for a long time.However, the next time she told me that, I stopped. And I thought. I realized that, because I am a Christian, I have every reason to be happy, and I should let that joy show through. Wow, Jesus loves ME. The creator of the entire world cares enough to love a sinful girl like me. That meant a lot to me. It's not easy to be smiling and keep this in mind, but from now on, I'm going to try to let that joy show through me. I have every reason to smile, to be joyful—I am loved. And you know what? So are you! No matter who you are, what you've done, or what you are going through, Jesus loves you and is waiting for you to run into His open arms. So, smile! Jesus loves you and so do I!

St. Valentine

“Flowers, candy, red hearts and romance. That's what Valentine's Day is all about, right?” (St. Valentine, The Real Story. By David Kithcart.)

No! Valentine's Day was started to remember St. Valentine—martyred on February 14. There are many ideas about why he is remembered, but the gist of it is this:

Valentine was a Roman Catholic Priest who lived during the reign of Emperor Claudius. Supposedly, the emperor passed a law stating that marrying was forbidden among young people. Claudius felt that if the young men were concerned about what would happen to their families if they died, then they wouldn't sign up for the army. So Claudius felt that the best solution was not to marry. However, Valentine continued to marry couples in secret. Eventually he was caught and thrown into prison where he befriended the jailer's daughter. On the day of his execution, he left a note to her and signed it, “from your Valentine” which would explain why the giving of notes has become a Valentine's Day tradition. St. Valentine believed in love and marriage, that's why he gave his life to go against Claudius's law and marry these young couples.

Next time you think about Valentine's Day, remember St. Valentine, who gave his life for such intangible things of value as love. As a matter of a fact, next time you think about someone that you love, tell them that you love them and appreciate them. Happy Valentine's Day!