THE UNSCRATCHABLE ITCH
1 Corinthians 13.
Love.
The most used word on the planet and more misused than the word grace. The strong affection for something or some "one" you just can't explain but you have a conviction of. You look at a person with so many flaws, imperfections, face full of claws and still have the smile of a 2 year old on your face. You gaze at this "one" with eyes that could water a whole forest and yet shine the brightest in the deep twilight.
Love. Generally defined as a feeling or desire but broken down into various kinds, some true, some false and one Divine. Distributed amongst every living creature on land, in the sea, in the air and even those unseen. Some say it's action, others just words, a few say pain and a host, feelings that will fade. But still, only one of these remain. If all definitions are combined to make sense to the divine but not to humans then it is "love".
Songs of Solomon talks about a love that cannot be drowned by many waters. Such love, you see, is not of mere understanding and certainly not of man but of a being far above our understanding. There's motherly love, fatherly love, brotherly love, love for strangers and love between a man and his lover preferably wife, but, we see otherwise now.
In each of these lie a feature known as sacrifice. And this feature is what differentiates true love from lust that is also called love. Not the imposed kind that comes with, "If you love me" but the voluntary that says, "you are strong" even when you are lying in bed unable to move "you are enough" even when everything obviously shows that you are not. And does, acts, expresses. A kind of love that has faith in you whether you look like a gutter or smell like a garbage truck. Love that hopes for you even when all hope looks lost.
Love.
It is in itself beautiful, yet with pain but only the kind of pain you'll willingly endure because you love. The kind you'll enjoy because of him or her or them. Love that is ready to pass through the fire with you and for you. Imagine a love that could die for you.
Love, if lost…
Snap out of this thought, it can never be lost. It can never fail and surely can never die.
Why?
Isn't it just an emotion strong as morphine? Morphine does fade off.
But
Love isn't just "a strong emotion", it's an eternal feeling. Sometimes it feels celestial in itself. Some call it, "the unscratchable itch". If you were to explain it, then it won't be love anymore but just one of those things. It's an energy that cannot be described but can be felt, experienced and witnessed in its full glory. You see, love isn't an evoked emotion caused by a few hormones. It can start there but it doesn't continue there.
Love is constantly choosing to be kind, to care, to believe, to be patient, to be joyful, to hope, to have faith. Love is a commitment of everything human but divine. You could call it a routine but it is not. If it were just affections and nothing more then we could conclude that man created it but man didn't, so, not a routine.
Love is,
"I'm really mad at you right now but you need a hug. Come here."
"I like spicy foods but you like sweet, let's try yours instead."
"I'm tired but I'll help you"
"I don't have a lot of time but let's talk"
"I don't have a lot at the moment but here's a token"
It goes on and on and on. A selfless act, a grateful heart, a blessed soul. Giving a piece of ourselves. Even if ourselves is a quarter of a coin.
We have all received and given love. Such a bliss experience and warm memory. Imagine a world full of love. A world that doesn't condemn, a world of kindness, a world where we thought of each other first before ourselves. Imagine a marriage that didn't have to break because a woman refused to share her earnings or a man turned his home to a UFC championship where he's the only winner.
What is my definition? As soon as I understand love, you'll be the first to know but here's what I have to say. God is love. Have I grasped the full understanding of this? No. But everyday, I try to love just as He loves. Whether you deserve it or not, I'll still love you. Is it hard? Yes. So how do I do it? "The Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Love of God and the Sweet fellowship of the Holy Spirit." I cannot give what I don't have so, I have to regularly fill myself so that I can fill others. As love is not physical and mortal, I need the supernatural and divine to fill me so that I can love effortlessly without hating myself and others.
I saw this after a movie, " Love is a powerful force, like gravity, it draws people together whether they are miles apart or a lifetime apart." No matter where you are, you are never far from love.
Selah 🕊️