"Beam-ectomy should precede all mote micro-surgery. Just saying." Ginger Conrad paraphrasing Jesus Christ.

Paradigm Shift

“The list of health problems I think it would very hard to live with is SO much longer than the list of foods I previously thought I couldn’t live without,” Merrill Alley.

Friday, August 30, 2013

pure joy

 God, the Father, loves everyone on earth unconditionally. This is an interesting and difficult concept/character trait to understand and implement. In recent years, several relatives sunk into dementia from alzheimer's. Who they once were that made them lovable disappeared. Where they still worthy of love without their dynamic personalities or elegant ways? God would say yes, but some of us had a very hard time with it. That is until we learned to look past what was lost and see the person as a child of God.

The Greeks call unconditional love agape as opposed to eros (sexuality) or phileo (friendship.) When people get married, they often eros and phileo, but agape must be developed. It is gentle, kind, patient, long-suffering, serene, and unselfish. When sickness, affliction, poverty, or other afflictions occur, they say. 'Come what may and I'll love it.' It's easy to love people who are lovable, but what about the unlovable. Those afflicted with alzheimer's are often unlovable. Godly love does just that.

This idea could easily end divorce. If we love our spouse not because they deserve it, not because we have tons in common, not because we enjoy intimacy, not because life is going great, but because we see them as God's children with amazing eternal potential, we love unconditionally. No, we don't stand for abuse, but that's another subject. Intimacy and happiness are ever so much more fulfilling when based on unconditional love; it doesn't look around and say what's in it for me. If we learn to love as God loves, divorce will seem like an odd idea but serving them will be pure joy.