Use Love to Push Forward. Love Them Anyway.
Love is all about looking for someone’s needs more than our own — even if they never ask.
Many people today seem to have a misconception, they think that we must like the people that we love.
Many people today seem to have a misconception, they think that we must agree with the people that we love.
Many people today seem to have a misconception, they think that we must understand the people that we love.
What is love?
Noun: “an intense feeling of deep affection.”
Noun: “unselfish loyal and benevolent concern for the good of another.”
That’s what the world says but this type of love is temporary, contingent upon a current situation, and oftentimes, not long lasting.
What does our Creator say?
“Spiritual love is not self-love, but rather self-sacrificing love.”
“Spiritual love is generous, not selfish or greedy.”
“Spiritual love is unending, not a temporary feeling, emotion, or attraction.”
“Spiritual love is undeserving and often unreciprocated.”
“Spiritual love is lavish.”
Using Love to Move Forward
When we love people based upon their actions, we will put ourselves into numerous situations where we won’t have love for the people around us.
We’ve all seen it.
When we are without love, we are without motivation and we are often drained of happiness.
It’s hard to become passionate about something when we are surrounded by coldness and there is no warmth.
We need to commit to loving people first. Only then can we actually love them.
It’s not about loving what someone does, it’s about loving who they are. You don’t need to like what a person does with their life — maybe they rob banks and you don’t like that. But, we can respect that they are making their own life decisions. We do not need to accept their decisions as right in our view but we do need to respect that they are right in their eyes — and we should love them.
The Opposite of Love
Who are the least productive people in your company?
Most times, they’re the victims. And victims rarely love their perceived oppressors.
Maybe they’re the people who think that someone is always out to get them, they have a lot of self-perceived enemies and they don’t like them, muchless love them.
When we talk badly or complain about someone, we are not often loving them at the same time.
What does it look like to love our enemies?
“If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat; if he is thirsty, give him water to drink.” — Proverbs 25:21 NIV
Love is all about looking for someone’s needs more than our own — even if they never ask.
Following the One Example of Love — Love Them Anyways
Maybe you aren’t familiar with the Bible and maybe you don’t even believe in the Bible right now, please don’t miss this next part.
In the Bible, Jesus is sent to the earth to save mankind. He paid the price for the sins that all of humanity has committed. God sent His ONLY son while we were still sinners. THAT is the type of love that we should model. We need to love people while they are still caught up in what they are.
If someone lies to your face? Love them.
It’s not about someone doing right by you and then loving them because of that.
It’s about loving someone even if they don’t do right by you — because of who you are.
The only way to continue pressing onward is to have unconditional love for those around you. People will let you down. People will lie to you. People will disappoint you. People will hurt you. Love. Them. Anyway.
“This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.” — 1 John 4:9–11 NIV
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