Love never gives up.

Love cares more for others than for self.
Love doesn’t want what it doesn’t have.
Love doesn’t strut,

Doesn’t have a swelled head,
Doesn’t force itself on others,
Isn’t always “me first,”
Doesn’t fly off the handle,

Doesn’t keep score of the sins of others,
Doesn’t revel when others grovel,
Takes pleasure in the flowering of truth,
Puts up with anything,

Trusts God always,
Always looking for the best,
Never looks back,
But keeps going to the end.
-1 Corinthians 13:4-7 (The Message)

 Wow! I think this is so powerful. How many people do we know in our life who really love us this way? Or how many people in our life do we love this way? When we hear the word love some of us might think of a feeling we have towards our friends or family. Some of us might think about a relationship between a married couple or a boyfriend and girlfriend. To some, love is a word that is put between their name and someone else’s name that they have a crush on in school. (I do not know about anyone else but I know I did not have this kind of love for any of the boys I liked or dated when I was in school.)
 Do we use the word love too loosely? Do we really think about what we are saying when we tell someone we love them or when we promise to love them until death do us part? Do we think we love someone just because we are attracted to them? Do we think we no longer love someone when the butterflies in our stomach are gone?
 The kind of love that is talked about in this passage comes out of a deep commitment more than out of a feeling. The kind of love talked about here is not a surface love. It is not a love that comes and goes. It is not a love that is based on physical appearances. This kind of love takes time, dedication, and working out. This kind of love is hardly portrayed in movies or read about in romance novels. But this kind of love is around. This kind of love can be obtained. And this kind of love can be given.
 This weekend I had the honor of spending the night with my mom in the hospital after she had her bone marrow transplant. I love my mom and have always loved my mom but the love I feel towards her now is different than when I was a child. When I was young I was more into my needs and wants than anyone else’s. When I was young I did not appreciate all the wonderful things my mom did for me. I did not have a strong relationship with God and therefore I feel like I did not know what true love was really about. But this weekend I felt a love for my mom that was even stronger than before. A love that took time, dedication and working through. A love that has been through good times but has also persevered through hard times. A love that put up with a lot of things but trusted God always. But in and through it all, we made a commitment to love one another and this kind of love never fails.
 God has blessed each and every one of us with people in our lives to have this kind of love but first we need to receive His love and know that we are worthy to have this kind of love in our lives. Then we have to stop being so selfish and petty in our relationships with our family and friends. We need to let go of the grudges, let go of the past hurts and mistakes, stop caring about who was right and who was wrong, take the time and prepare our hearts for the commitment, stop looking back at what he or she did wrong and forgive and move forward.
 If we truly want this kind of love we need to make sure we are looking and concentrating on how we are loving others. (Not on how others are loving us.) The only person we can control is ourselves so if we want to have this kind of love then we need to give this kind of love. 
***If anyone wants to share some thoughts or an example of this kind of love, email me at lisa.talton@yahoo.com