The Decision to Love

*This past semester we were asked to keep a journal of our thoughts throughout the class, this is one of my entries*

​I once read a book that stated “But falling in love is different. Falling is a feeling. Loving is a decision. You can fall in love with a lot of people, but you don’t have to make a commitment to them.” This quote has stuck with me through the years, because of the truth of it. Love is not always rainbows and unicorn and is more often than not hard, frustrating, and challenging, which of course many people know, but many people do not understand the depth of love that God calls us to have. I’m reminded of this, because of a statement that my father always reminds me of which was Jesus told husbands to love their wives as Christ loved the church. If we take that literally that means suffering and dying for the other person. I don’t think many people associate love with suffering and dying for one another. It takes me back to Corinthians, which says “love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things and endures all things. Love never ends.” This is such an explicit command for husbands. When God calls us to love our neighbors, to love people we need to remember this. It isn’t the falling in love, it is the loving action, but even more than loving only our neighbors this extends to all people, parents, siblings, spouses, children, etc. We cannot say that we are choosing to love people and forget what loving people actually means, which is simply put as sacrificing for one another. It never ends. It endures all things.

CG

On Covenants

*This past semester we were asked to keep a journal of our thoughts throughout the class, this is one of my entries*

​Today we talked a lot about covenants and there are a lot of reasons I am really passionate about this subject. We talked about how in Job in chapter 31 he made a covenants with his eyes, and in doing he was taking responsibility for his actions. I had never considered the idea of making a covenant with oneself. It is surprising now to see how many times this appears in the Bible with different ideas. When we look in Proverbs it says to not stir up or awaken love until the appropriate time. For emphasis Proverbs says this three times. Its once again talking about the responsibility you have to yourself to protect yourself. Similarly, when you get married, you are making a covenant before god and others to put this marriage above all things but God. It gives you the responsibility to take care of your marriage, to guard it, to tend it, to not give up on it. I mean we look at the covenant God made with the Israel. He chose to love them despite their brokenness and the fact that they kept leaving Him. The covenant was so important to God that he chose to overlook those things and continue to choose them over and over. I believe that marriage is not just a covenant with God and your spouse, but is a covenant with yourself.

CG

What My Husband taught Me About Christ

I had just finished explaining to my husband how I felt everyone in my life has expectations of me. Expectations I didn’t always understand or even know about. How I always felt exhausted, running around trying understand what everyone wants or needs from me before they asked.  How I just wanted to love him and make him happy.

Then he sat down next to me, our folded clothes surrounding us, and said, “Honey, I don’t expect anything from you. Do I want you to love me and spend time with me? Yes! But I’m here. I’ll always be here. You don’t have to ‘do’ anything to earn my love! You already have it.”

And as he was sitting there looking at me, God got ahold of my heart. There have been times in this past year I wondered why God gave me my husband. Why God saw fit to make me a wife, because, y’all, I am not good at it. Why did God think this was a good idea? It is for moments like these, where God, ever so lovingly, says “This, this is the reason.”

Because does He want me to love Him, spend my time with Him, and serve Him? Yes! But will He leave me or abandon me when I don’t? No! He is there. He shows up, and will continue to show up. Just like my husband.

CG