GOD'S VIEW OF LOVE

Revival Fire Ministries Worldwide
GOD'S VIEW OF LOVE

TWENTY OF THE MOST ASKED QUESTIONS

CONCERNING LOVE, DATING, & MARRIAGE

TAKEN FROM TODAY'S TEENS!

BY: DOUG JOHNSON

1. What is Love?

A lot of people are looking for love but not many know what the real meaning of love is. Some people describe love as that "butterflies-in-the-stomach feeling" you get whenever you're around someone special. It's often accompanied by sweaty palms, racing pulse, and blurred vision (sounds like a heart attack, doesn't it?!). It's also been said that love is a form of amnesia during which a girl forgets there are 1,222,978,173 other guys in the world!

Actually, it's a wonderful feeling...especially when you find that one person with whom you want to spend the rest of your life! Webster's dictionary defines love as: a profoundly tender affection for a person of the opposite sex.

A little boy sat down on the bench beside his girlfriend. The little girl asked, "Do you love me?"

"Yes, dear," the little boy replied.

"Would you die for me?" she asked.

"No," replied the boy. "Mine is an undying love!"

The Bible tells us in 1 John 4:8, "He that loves not knows not God; for God is love." In other words, the only way to attain perfect love is through God alone; put Him first in your life, build your relationship around Him, and you will find out what love is all about!

2. Is caring a lot for someone the same as loving that person?

This is really left up to the individual. A better question to ask would be: "Do you care enough about that person to include the ingredients found in 1 Corinthians chapter 13 in your relationship?" Verse 7 tells us that love "bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things." In other words, are you willing to commit to this person no matter what they do, how they act, where they go, or what they say? You see, that's why it is so important to date and marry someone who beleives the same way you do. Otherwise, you may find yourself committed to someone that gets involved in some very ungodly situations. And, over a period of time you will begin to drift away from God, too.

I've known many teenagers and young adults who were closer to God when they were single than when they started dating. This is why you should pray and ask God to help you in choosing the right person to date and/or marry. Always keep your relationship with God the first priority in your life. Remember: He knows what's best for you so He'll bring that special boyfriend/ girlfriend to you that best compliments your personality and interests!

3. What are the ingredients of "true love" in a relationship?

The Bible tells us in 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 that, "Love is long-suffering and kind (doesn't get mad at every little thing), love is not envious (isn't jealous), love vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up (does not push itself on anyone and isn't proud), love doesn't behave unseemly, seeketh not it's own (isn't selfish), love is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil (isn't easily angered and isn't ready to suspect evil); Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things." No matter what happens, true love will be there hoping for the best and holding on until the end! In short, love never fails... love conquers all!

A good example of love in action is the Menninger Clinic. The work of the Menninger Clinic is organized around love. From the top psychiatrist down to the electricians and caregivers, all contacts with patients must manifest love. And it was "love unlimited." The result was that hospitalization time was cut in half.

There was a woman who for three years sat in her rocking chair and never said a word to anyone. The doctor called a nurse and said, "Mary, I'm giving you Mrs. Brown as your patient. All I'm asking you to do is to love her till she gets well." The nurse tried it. She got a rocking chair of the same kind as Mrs. Brown's, sat alongside her, and loved her morning, noon, and night. The third day the patient spoke and in a week she was out of her shell-- and well! That's the power of love.

In Dostoyevsky's Crime and Punishment , the central character, Raskolnikov, finally confessed his crime and was sent to Siberia. Sonya, the girl who loved him, followed voluntarily and found a job in a town nearest his work camp. At first, Raskolnikov was bitter about his exile and contemptuoous of everyone, including Sonya. But the day came when her unflagging love and humble service melted his heart, and he loved her in return. Dostoyevsky writes, "They were renewed by love; the heart of each held infinite resources of life for the heart of the other. They had another seven years to wait, and what terrible suffering and infinite happiness before them! But he had risen again, and he knew it and felt it in his being, while she-- she lived only in his life. Seven years, only seven years!"

No wonder the Bible says that love is always believing, hoping and enduring!

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