What is Love?

So you say you love him/her!

Love is patient,

Love is kind.

It does not envy,

It does not boast,

It is not proud.

It is not rude,

It is not self-seeking,

It is not easily angered,

It keeps no record of wrongs.

Love does not delight in evil but rejoices in the truth.

It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Love never fails.

1 Cor. 13

So, love is not passionately liking someone. It is not a strong attraction to someone. It is not having great sex with someone. It is not being in love with the feelings you feel when you are with someone. It is not just a feeling, so that you will put up with anything to be with that person. I believe that true love does not begin until you have seen the real ugliness of your lover. Not until you see the pimples, the bad habits and the grossness in your partner that real love can then begin. Love is a choice to embrace not only the good in that person but their flaws as well. I am not suggesting we should overlook destructive, harmful behavior like child abuse or drug addiction or extra-marital affairs. But love begins when we see a person’s flaws and accept and embrace that person. We accept them for who they are and not some fantasy of who we want them to be. That is when true love can begin. Then it continues on and on as the scripture suggests.