i love you like a fat kid loves cake.

love is selfless. those three words have been running through my head for a while now, and i thought it was about time i put pen to paper (or fingertip to keyboard, i suppose), and process a little.

the love chapter in first corinthians has long been one of my favorite passages and a constant reminder of what love truly is. there's the 'i love cake' kind of love, 'i love my child,' 'i love my brother/sister,' 'i love my best friend,' 'i love dance, photography, and the outdoors,' and my favorite...'i love love.' i think that all too often, though, we throw the L word around all too casually. on the flip side, however, sometimes we don't say it enough. love can drive us to the lowest lows and let us soar cloud 9. love is fulfilling, love is frustrating, love is complex, love is simple, love is love.

it is patient, kind, forgiving, honest, pure, humble, serving, good, true, and lies at the heart of who we are. we were born to love, and to be loved in return - most importantly by our Creator. and yet, in the essence of who He is, God allowed us to seek our own loves, to fall in love with him, and to tangibly catch a glimpse of His perfect love here on earth. without love, without Him, there is nothing.

this past month has taught me much about boy/girl love...i've loved chocolate, shoes, coffee, friends, family, God, music, and life, but i have never loved a boy in an 'in love' way...and now, here i am, and once again, God is revealing new things to me about myself and about Him...namely, that love is selfless, and i am not always such a selfless person.

i think that often we expect things out of friendships and relationships because we feel we're entitled to them. we think we deserve to be served, cherished, and coddled, and i suppose that in part we do. then again, we don't. we don't deserve a thing, and i think that until we recognize that everything we have is a God thing and nothing less, we can't understand what it is to truly be grateful. relationships are a give and take, and there may be moments where it's more give than take. true love, however, doesn't even count the costs, because there is nothing true love would rather do than love on someone else, expecting nothing in return.

Christ poured Himself out continuously, and we are called to live that same life, for He knew, and we need to understand, that our eternal reward lies with Him, and this life is for Him and for others. we are called to so much more than simply ourselves and our own desires. living life always expecting something from others will result in nothing more than total disappointment. people will disappoint. it's in our nature, and it's in God's design, for we must understand that perfect love can only be found in Him. it is unfair to hold others to a higher standard than we hold ourselves to. it is unfair to let human mistakes harden our hearts. love asks for nothing in return. love revels in being a listener, a helper, a confidante, a supporter, a friend. if we walk through our day waiting on someone to come to our side and pamper us, support us and offer a shoulder to cry on, we will be sorely disappointed. people can't read minds...even your best friend will fail. and yet, our validation and security should not come from those closest to us in our own world, but from our God. the minute we turn our exhaustion, our worries, and our stress to Him, we find the peace that passes all understanding, and we learn what it is to love others despite their failings and our own.

i have been beyond blessed in love, and for that, i'm so grateful. yet, every day is another step in learning to love others better. so to those reading, thank you for loving me. i don't deserve it. and sorry if i have ever failed you as a friend, a sister, a person. forgive me for my selfishness in times you need selflessness. know that i am on this journey with you as we unravel life, relationships, and love together.

[let's live a life of love]