Love is Genuine

okay, I am going to read Romans 12:9-10 out of the message translation before I read it in actuality. I like the way this is worded. "Love from the center of who you are, don't fake it! Run for dear life from what is evil; Hold on for dear life to good. Be good friends who love deeply; practice playing second fiddle"

Whether you are married, engaged, in a relationship, or for most of the people that probably read this, single, You can gleam incredible knowledge from this passage of scripture. The whole passage in the ESV reads as follows.

"Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight. Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all."

If you weren't aware, today is valentines day. (If you have a special someone and you didn't know that, proceed to thinking of ideas of how to show them genuine love now) Valentines day is the day of love. Mostly a distorted love but a love nonetheless. This doesn't mean that we can't strive to treat this day with a true love. Remember first off, that God loves us! He already made the biggest love sacrifice 2000 years ago. He fulfills all of our longing for a significant other; He fulfills all of our passions and dreams. In Him is everything found. No other man or woman will ever provide that for you! He is the ultimate valentine no matter what your relationship status is.

ok, so now that the most important premise is set, how should we treat this valentines day amongst each other? Should we wait for all the wonderful candies and cards like we did in elementary school when all we wanted was a valentine card from a girl named Ilana? Or whatever your story was. Should we seek to bring glory to our selves in the way that we give? If we are single, should we condemn the holiday and keep living for ourselves like nothing else matters? Should we constantly be depressed that we have no one to spend it with? should we seek to have someone fulfill the wants and needs in our lives in a never ending longing and obsession for love? OF . . . COURSE. . . . NOT! In the verse above, the main point is to be unselfish, to be genuine, to out honor everyone else!

Love is not to be fake, or selfish, or self glorying, or depressed! Its to be completely content on God's love and then to display that love to those around you! It's about the smile you can put on their face! It's about the joy you can give to them! So on this Valentine's day, and really every day, just go display genuine love to people! Take this verse with you today. write it down, memorize as much as you can of it, think about what it means, overall just metaphorically chew on it wherever you go.

Happy Valentine's Day!