Understanding Real Love.
In our culture, we throw the word love around so freely that it often loses its depth. We say things like, “I love that book,” and ”I love ketchup” and “I love that person I just met yesterday”, and we laugh because we all know how casually we use it.
Love has become a lighthearted word, something we attach to temporary satisfactions that fade as soon as the next new love comes along.
My daughter loved her new shoes until the next pair came out, and then those became her favorite. We hit the love button all day long on social media without much thought. You know what I mean. Because of this, it is no wonder that understanding the depth of God’s love can feel so difficult. When love is treated as fleeting or conditional, it becomes hard to believe that God’s love is anything different.
Yet the truth is that God really does want what is best for you. He still loves you when you make mistakes. He desires for you to live with peace, goodness, kindness, faithfulness, gentleness, patience, self-control, joy, and yes, love. His love is not fragile or temporary. It does not disappear when things get messy.
In Greek, the word for God’s love is agape. This is the love that moved God to send His Son to redeem the world, a love with depth and meaning that never fades. In Hebrew, the word for love is ahavah, which comes from a root meaning to give. To love is to give.
No matter the language or definition, love is more than a feeling. Love is an action. Love is giving. Love is a connection.
To give anything, there must be someone willing to receive it. Love requires connection. And yet, we live in a world that feels more disconnected than ever. Maybe that is why so many of us feel distant from God. We struggle to feel connected to others when most of our communication happens through screens. We struggle to feel good about ourselves when we constantly compare our worst moments to everyone else’s highlight reel. And it becomes nearly impossible to understand God’s love and purpose for our lives when we are not truly connected to Him.