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This week, we have a guest writer, Rev. S.
William Brown, Pastor of St. Paul CME in Bowman, GA, who will bring us two
reflections on Love. This is the
second of the two. Enjoy!
“Love recognizes no barriers. It jumps,
leap fences, penetrates walls to arrive at its destination full of hope.” ~ Maya Angelou
In this second week of February, as
Valentine's Day approaches, we start to reevaluate our relationships. One has
to reevaluate ourselves to see if even we know what love is. So, what is Love? To this writer it
that feeling in which you are made complete. When at times you wait by the
phone, to answer and become elated to hear the voice of that special someone.
To get to where you start to complete each other sentences. Those of us in more
seasoned relationships wonder if the love is still there, sometimes
overanalyzing our situation to the point where we are either all in or trying
to get out.
This is common because often times we are
unaware of what love is. As mentioned earlier this week, there are four types
of Love defined by the Ancient Greek:
agape (unconditional), eros
(passionate love), philieo
(brotherly/friendly love), and storge
(parental). Here, we focus on eros and philieo, which are similar to us. We sometimes enter into romantic relationships with those we
consider our soul mates, but sometimes our mates really should only be our
friends. And just because they
have everything that you desire, or you feel they complete you, we can mess up
God's plan by pursuing a romantic relationship. Yes, some relationships start off as friendships and can be
allowed to grow into a deeper connection.
If eros and phileo are so close, then how can we tell which one to pursue? Before we can love others, we
must first love ourselves the way God loves us. God gives the opportunity to
learn how to love. We are nurtured
from our mother's womb and shown love through our rearing up. Paul, in I
Corinthians 13:4-7 writes, “Love is
patient, love is kind. Love does not envy, is not boastful, is not conceited,
does not act improperly, is not selfish, is not provoked, 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”. Only then can
we go out and experience love and find the one we want to be with start a
family and continue to show that same love.
Consider evaluating your eros and phileo relationships and, with God’s help, discern how to deepen
each one.
Be blessed
S. William Brown
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