OUR VIEW
Hallmark holiday such as it is, we hope to pause on Monday for something a bit more meaningful than candy, flowers and a nice time with our sweeties.
Yes, Valentine’s Day is love. Enjoy it! It’s pinks and reds and spending time with the ones we love and letting them know in oh, so many ways. We hope it is joyful for all.
Our hope also is that we remember that love is much more than romance.
As we read through our Bible, we are reminded many times of how much our God wishes for us to love. And through translation of the Greek, we are able to understand each very clearly.
Eros, storge, phileo and agape all mean love.
For this Monday, many of us will indeed be immersed in eros, the kind of love that refers to romance and the sensual.
Storge is that natural affection existing between those of us who are kin. While we focus on romance, many also will talk with parents or children and share their love.
Phileo is the kind shared, for example, by believers in Christ. It is a brotherly love.
And then there is agape, God’s love for all of mankind. This is the kind of love that the Bible refers to more than any other.
Today’s climate for all of us is challenging. We’re tethered to our cellphones and laptops, with word going to and fro as easily as all of us being in the same room. The shouts are loud, and the thoughts are not always clear before the voice lets loose.
There’s an effort among so many to be heard, and if we can’t then we have to find another way to assert our perceived authority. Look at our Facebook page, at our Instagram, at our Twitter — look, look, look! We have the opinion everyone seeks.
But do we really? Certainly not for everyone.
Truth is, we need to listen.
Today is as good a time as any to do just that; to first stop, clear the noise and lend an ear. For as much as we want to be the loudest, no one hears anything without giving a turn to our neighbor.
And there’s simply not enough of that.
The bickering, fighting and over-analyzing is well past comfort levels. Why we are “entertained” by such back-and-forth is a bit of a head-scratcher, but that’s where things are in news, politics, sports and just about anything else.
As much as we’re a society craving the instantaneous, we’re certainly one that wants comparisons.
Pause today, and compare the love of God to what we share with others. It pales in comparison, but does it follow His example? Would He be pleased with what we say, and what we pause to hear?
Love one another.
And have a happy Valentine’s Day.