Love is defined in the dictionary as a strong affection for another arising out of kinship (family) or personal ties. An assurance of affection. The object of attachment, devotion, or admiration is unselfish, loyal and benevolent. The word love carries a lot of weight if you stop and dwell on it for a bit. I feel as if though, we have dampened the meaning and the weight it carries. I love coffee, I love that dress, I love your hair, I love my car, I love this book, I love money, I love......you finish it. As Christians we are called to walk in Love. But to really walk in love I feel like we need to get back to the root of love and the way it was intended to be shared, experienced, and demonstrated.

At the beginning of my marriage I can assure you we did not get married because we were "in love" as many people would say. We knew there was a connection and a problem to solve and that was enough for us. The first half of our marriage was marked by betrayal, hurt, and a lot of confusion. Most of these issues stemmed from both of us being hurt and not knowing how to love or be loved. The second half though has been completely different because we invited Love into the middle of our mess and realized we cannot love and be loved if we did not know love.

So, what is love? Love is not a whimsical fairytale experience.

1 Corinthians 13:4-7 (CSB), “Love is patient, love is kind. Love does not envy, is not boastful, is not arrogant, is not rude, is not self-seeking, is not irritable, and does not keep a record of wrongs. Love finds no joy in unrighteousness but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.”

Be honest, if you sat and actively applied that type of love to your workplace, relationships, friendships, family, and even your spiritual walk, would it make a difference? Would it be easier or harder? We naturally want our own self-preservation, happiness, acceptance, advancement but that's not what love is. Love is selfless. Love is shifting the focus from self and fixing it on Christ and from that place you will love others correctly. The moment my husband and I realized love isn't what Hollywood movies make it out to be, the moment we chose the other over ourselves. Well, that is the moment we really fell in love. Now I am learning how to apply that love to all those around me in every circumstance.

1 John 4:19 (CSB), “We love because he first loved us.”

1 John 4:10-11 (CSB), “Love consists in this: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, if God loved us in this way, we also must love one another.”

None of us deserved that kind of love, yet Jesus chose us and loved us even in our brokenness and betrayal. You may feel like that person who wronged you doesn’t deserve that kind of love. The person who cut you off in traffic. The lady takes too long to ring you out in the store. Your boss keeps making your workload harder. Take a moment next time to respond like Jesus.

The moment you respond from the place of true love found from a gaze fixed on Christ is the moment atmospheres will shift. I am not saying that all your problems will vanish but you may just see that they really aren't as bad as they may seem. You will fail at times, believe me, just extend yourself grace. Friends this week focus on fixing your gaze on Jesus, invite the author of Love itself into every aspect and see things change.