Love as a noun spent all last week wondering what your spouse was going to do for you for Valentine’s Day. Love as a verb spent all last week preparing your expression of love for your spouse.
- Love as a noun feels despair when you no longer feel “in love” with the person you are married to. Love as a verb understands the ebb and flow of feelings. It focuses more on expressing love than feeling love.
- Love as a noun demands its own way. Love as a verb works to understand differences and is open to new ways of doing things.
- Love as a noun finds faults in others. Love as a verb gives grace and forgiveness.
- Love as a noun expects others to serve them. Love as a verb serves freely.
- Love as a noun expects to always feel warm and fuzzy and “in love.” Love as a verb realizes that often we have to choose to love even when we don’t feel like it.
The most frequently quoted Bible verse at weddings is I Corinthians 13, which is often referred to as the “love chapter.” It says that “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.”
The most interesting thing, however, is a less often quoted part of the verse that says, “When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me.”
So love has to grow up. It has to mature. Who knew grammar could reveal so much about love?"
-Jill Savage.org
I was also thinking about 1 Cor. 13. They are such familiar verses...what if we read them in different terms?
Love does not need to hurry things along.
Love is not meanspirited.
Love is secure.
Love is humble.
Love is thoughtful.
Love puts the other first.
Love has a lot of grace to give.
Love throws away the record book.
Love celebrates victories.
Love does not leave someone vulnerable.
Love believes in them.
Love expects greatness for them.
Love cannot be tossed aside.
Hmm... some food for thought for me.
1 comment:
Random thought: This post reminded me of a quote by Jonathan Switf: "Good manners is the art of making people comfortable in our presence. The one who makes the fewest people uneasy, has the best manners." ... I think it is so sad when family is rude b/c they are comfortable and at home. It is better when we show love by using good manners...adults and children alike....
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