February 14th, 2011/ Concord, NH
Love is a beautiful and lofty thing, as long as it’s abstract and distant. Once it becomes ‘real’ that’s when the hard stuff starts.
That’s because love is actually a choice we make, to choose to do the ‘best’ thing for others even if it hurts or is inconvenient. That’s why we must ‘choose’ to Love God. It may come easier at times, when our emotions and circumstances and the moon and the stars are just in the right place…but other times that choice is painful. When Christ laid his life down for the world, He demonstrated what real love looked like. It’s not pretty…but it is beautiful beyond words. That’s the kind of love we attempt to describe in our song, “Love Amazing”.
“Greater love has no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.” John 15:13
Actually, He went one step further; He laid down his life for his friends…and his enemies.
This valentine’s day we celebrate the people who choose to love, even when times are difficult. When they’ve lost someone so dear to them that it becomes unbearable…but still find the strength to give hope to others. The one’s who demonstrate Christ’s love to all of us. The mothers and fathers who never give up on their prodigal sons and daughters. The husbands and wives in hospital rooms holding frail hands and whispering prayers in the night. And the brave soul who, for the sake of the gospel, travel great distances and give of their time and resources to those who can never pay them back. You and I… we are not alone…we have an eternal friend who understands us and loves us beyond what any can imagine…and that kind of Love is worth celebrating every day of the year.
~gabe
