Love…no beginning, yet in a blink of an eye!

Ecclesiastes 3:1–8 For everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven. A time to be born and a time to die. A time to plant and a time to harvest. A time to kill and a time to heal. A time to tear down and a time to build up. A time to cry and a time to laugh. A time to grieve and a time to dance. A time to scatter stones and a time to gather stones. A time to embrace and a time to turn away. A time to search and a time to quit searching. A time to keep and a time to throw away. A time to tear and a time to mend. A time to be quiet and a time to speak. A time to love and a time to hate. A time for war and a time for peace.

The way time and love works is interesting. When you love someone, you lose track of when that began…it’s like you have loved that person as long as your memory goes back. Yet, at the same time, because life really is a vapor and time moves sooooo fast, it was only moments ago you realized that what you felt for this person was in fact “love”. 

I cannot remember when I “fell” in love with anyone I love. It’s as though that was always the commitment of my heart. Still, in all honesty, there was no “falling” in love, there was “falling” in infatuation! “NO FAIR” you say Nate! Sorry, I will disagree. We live and learn most of the time, I wish we learned and lived! The human heart most times moves ahead of the human mind. So what our heart calls love, really isn’t. Love is based on a decision of commitment and that takes time, plain and simple. This is why this decision should be given time and not rushed into. I know someone will share the example of a whirlwind romance of a few days that has been together for 50 years. I know of a few…but the numbers going the opposite direction toward unhappiness, a destructive and wrecked relationship is far higher…and sad to say the norm. Why should we hope for grace and “maybe” when we can have so much part in the decision. This is what happened to the two great loves of my life. My Lord Jesus…I did not love Him. He first loved me. I was drawn to Him because of my fear of being separated from my Creator due to my sin and because of His unbelievable sacrifice and commitment to me. That was infatuation. When the first bumps in the road hit, I, like many, wondered if I had made a smart decision. The more time I spent with Him, the more I found lovely and worth my commitment of love. Now I cannot imagine a moment without Him and am still awed at why He would ever love someone like me. 

The second love of my life is a woman I shared vows with 34 years ago on the 18^th of this month. This too was infatuation at first. Her looks and personality were very attractive. As we grew to know each other, the warts and moods that all humans have became apparent. By then though, time had been taken to know the person inside. Infatuation was replaced by love. I did not keep looking, no need, I had found the person I wanted to spend my life with. It seems that just yesterday I was standing with her sharing vows…3 children, 2 Pastorates, 19 years on the mission field, 3 spouses for our kids and 3 grandsons…in a moment…that we call a lifetime. The most interesting aspect of time and love for me is…yes I love her more each year, but what is really exciting is how much I like her. I really do…I ask her to go with me when I am on the way to the store…just because I like her. She really has become my closest friend after the Lord. This is a gift of time…we need to use it wisely because this is the only season we will have it. In eternity it will no longer be an issue. Thanks Lord for Your love, her love and the time to experience them!

 

1 Corinthians 13:4–7, 13  Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged.  It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance…Three things will last forever—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love.