LOVE is the answer!

 "Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things." 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 

Truly there is nothing better than the above description of love as defined in scripture of the Christian Bible. Love is more than eloquent words it is supported by behavior of those professing love. One can say, "I love you" and they will not/should not be believed if the words are not backed up by loving behavior. Similarly, one can do nice things for other people, but if they do these things begrudgingly or without love, then they may do some good, but personally, I would rather people who choose to do things out of obligation alone just not - where I am concerned.

Sure, in any relationship there is perhaps some sense of obligation due to the mere nature of what it means to have a commitment. The very words one often recites in a marital ceremony reflect such obligatory verbiage. "... for better or worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health..." and so on. How many people stand by these words. I am no saint and can attest that I broke this vow more than once in my past. I'm not here to judge, just to report and stand up for truth.

Perhaps my point is that we could all "love" better. Love is an action word. To say that one love's is virtually meaningless if the things they do are at best, unloving, and at worst, self-seeking, hurtful, hateful, or evil. If both people in any given relationship continually seek the other person's best interests, value the other person above themselves, and put the other person's needs before their own, then we would all be better off. People would not be seeking solace in drugs, alcohol, food, other people, or develop other poor habits or obsessions that take away from quality human interaction. There are so many distractions in the world these days that one can virtually always find something to do, even if it is playing a mindless game on their phone, watching stupid videos on YouTube, or even buying stuff with a few clicks on a phone or computer (I have done ALL of these things).

The aforementioned definitely have not been positive influences especially for "Generation Z" in regard to the development of interpersonal connections. They have also distracted the rest of us on through the "Baby Boomers" and beyond. There is not only little incentive for people to have interpersonal connection, but the added issues related to isolation due to Covid, and school closings, etc. have not helped. Everyone wants to feel loved, wanted, have a sense of belonging. This is why when people don't have true loving relationships in their lives, they turn to gangs, and other unhealthy self-destructive behaviors.

I hope that your takeaway from this (as well as my own) is to have a few simple tools that will help us each love one another better. We love better when we listen. I don't mean listening just to hear, but to actually listen for content. This includes giving eye contact, and undivided attention when talking with another human. The way we know that we are doing this is if we are able to reflect back what a person says. Good communication requires that we also use and choose our words carefully. There are many ways one can express and show their love for another person. Two more of them include expressing gratitude. A simple "thank you" can do wonders to feed the soul of another. The other one is physical affection. The appropriate means of demonstrating physical affection depends on the type of relationship and, of course respecting boundaries therein. So, let's all go love another better!!!

Comments

Bill Meiter said…
1 Corinthians 13:4-7 is a great passage!
July 10, 2024 at 5:47 PM
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