Note: The following is the most pointed blog I have written. I pray that my words will not offend but will bless and inspire.
Love is or it isn’t. There is no middle ground. Love is not easily defined, nor can it be bought, touched, held, or placed into a beautifully wrapped package. Love is abstract, tender, and tolerant. Love is an emotion, and love is the tear in your eye when you hold a hand that slips into eternity. Love doesn’t make the world go around, but the absence of love can be seen in many of our world’s ills.
Love is not lust. Lust is selfish. Attraction is not love. Love is patient and kind. Love does not envy. Love does not boast. Love is not proud. Love does not dishonor others. Love is not self-seeking. Love is not easily angered. Love keeps no record of wrongs. (Ouch!)
I don’t fully understand the hippie movement or the anti war movement during the Viet Nam era, but I can’t help thinking how radically different our culture is today. I am not advocating a return to the time that fostered songs like “I Want to Hold Your Hand” by the Beatles, but I do know our nation, our politics, and society, seems headed towards revolution rather than a loving solution.
I am weary of politics, protests, and ideological persecutions. As a Christian I have little hope that our society will heal itself. I don’t know if civilization is on life support, or if there is a disruptive force that will bring us to our senses. Are we in the last days before Jesus comes? I honestly hope so. I fear the world my little grand-kids will be facing if something doesn’t change.
I have a better solution than all of us drinking Kool-Aid (Jim Jones 1978). Christians should be the epitome of love in our world. Christ loves us unconditionally. Should we not strive to love others unconditionally? Acts of service shouldn’t be relegated to a community service day but should be a part of our everyday. A smile, a kind word, and a helping hand, flow from a loving heart.
Love should permeate our homes and our lives. We should be known by our love, and that love should point others to the cross we hold so dear. Love and forgiveness cannot be separated. I will repeat that. Love and forgiveness cannot be separated. In a culture that seems to be spiraling out of control, we can have a hope that endures to the end. Turn off the news. The days of Walter Cronkite simply telling news of the day is over. Seek every day to display the love of Christ in to those you meet.
Stan Means
Elder Source Senior Ministries
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