Attain and Sustain: Pure and Lasting Love
Written By: Gena Caruthers
February 13, 2022
“Tomorrow is Valentine’s Day, a day we will exchange cards and gifts with people we love. But let me ask you… What is pure love? How do we attain and sustain lasting love? Join me today as we dissect this complex equation of LOVE from a Biblical perspective.
And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing. 1 Corinthians 13:3 (NKJV)
We were created to love.
We were created to love. But today I am troubled… because this world in which we live has warped, tarnished, and sexualized this precious four-letter word, to the point its God-given meaning is lost.
Love has been dragged through the mud!
1 Corinthians 13 gives us a clear picture of our Creator’s idea of pure and lasting love:
Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails. 1 Corinthians 13:4 8 (NKJV)
I have always been a lover of people. I love easily and forgive with ease (usually). You may ask how? Well, that’s an entirely different devotion (lol), which mostly reflects on my parents, my upbringing, and my relationship with the Creator.
I’m thankful to have been blessed with a life that has exemplified pure and Godly love. Has it been perfect? No, absolutely not. Without divulging my heart, I too have been taken advantage of by the evil hands of polluted love, but this is not my identity, it’s not even my story. God’s pure and lasting love is my story, and His faithful love is my attaining and sustaining anchor; I want it to be yours too!
Pure Love is easy to define, but much more difficult to find, or live.
Our society has sexualized the word love to the point of pity. A word that has so much power and meaning, a word that goes to the deepest and most vulnerable parts of our heart, and now it is so misused. While this word most definitely has a sexual meaning, (to which I will add: was ordained within a marriage between a man and a woman to be blessed; it was not intended to be contaminated by pornography, homosexuality, fornication (sex outside of marriage), adultery, and such sin). Read 1 Corinthians 6:9; God intended for humans to express their feelings to their Creator and each other with very pure and defined boundaries.
I enjoy watching movies from the early 1900 era and before. Why? I am fascinated by their use of the English language. Words were used to articulate their true feelings. Perhaps that’s why I relish words and their definitions.
So today, I’m not talking about your love for pizza, traveling, or chocolate. I’m talking about pure and lasting LOVE. Looking at the definition, I find it interesting that love is always directed toward another human, versus a thing. This truly makes me think twice about how I use this precious word.
God wants us to use, apply, and exemplify love to others in the way He modeled for us, as pure love.
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. John 3:16 (NKJV)
“But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us” Ephesians 2:4 (NKJV)
So, the quandary for us today is: how do we attain and sustain this pure love in our lives, and between each other?
Honestly, I wish I were an expert, but I can only provide realistic and practical advice. (Mostly like Dear Abby – LOL, for my older audience out there!)
Attaining Pure and Lasting Love
Attaining pure love is more challenging. Love is a tricky thing… and the heart, well, it’s even more tricky. God’s Word says, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” Jeremiah 17:9. It’s funny because when I think of attaining pure love, I think of the country song where Johnny Lee sings: “Looking for Love in all the wrong places.” (ROTFL!!!). While I realize this is a worldly song referring to bars, women, and looking for love… I sometimes even see this in the Christian arena.
Women looking for love and seeking to attain love. I’m not only referring to sexual love, but the love from others by: acceptance, social likes, approval, and recognition. Looking. Looking… Yearning… Feeling unfulfilled because they are desperately looking for love (and in all the wrong places – lol). As an older woman, my best advice is: STOP LOOKING AND START LIVING! And live according to what you desire to be or possess! In other words, if you want Godly things, live Godly. Let me give you a practical illustration. If you plant okra, you’re going to get okra. You can’t plant okra and expect to get beautiful, red, sweet, and delicious strawberries. Girl! You’re going to get OKRA! STOP looking in all the wrong places to attain pure and lasting love. Start living according to God’s Word and principles. My sweet friend, START LIVING! And the love of life will find you.
Sustaining Pure and Lasting Love
Sustaining pure love is a daily process; it… is….WORK. I’m sure it is not a revelation to you that sustaining pure love isn’t easy. It’s going to require an investment of:
Time
Money
Energy
Self-sacrifice
Most of all… FORGIVENESS. Lots of forgiveness.
Forgiveness is HUGE, and an important topic that will be discussed in next week’s devotion. I’m not going to tackle that subject today, but will I share a significant revelation with you. You can say “I’m sorry” without an admission of wrongness! This is the part of being sorry that translates as: sorry that we don’t agree, but we still love, and nothing is going to come between our love. It means that you have your opinion, I have mine, and we both feel strongly different, but we can set our differences aside and continue to enjoy sustaining pure love. WOW! You know what? I think that’s the kind of love that’s talked about in 1 Corinthians 13.
I’ve seen spouses: people who were once deeply and intensely in love with each other, children, parents, and best friends stripped and robbed of Attaining and Sustaining: Pure and Lasting Love because the enemy of our soul would like nothing more than to rob us of the perfect and pure love God wants us to share with others in our lives.
So tomorrow is Valentine’s Day, a time to show our love. I will be bold enough to say…. It’s time to take back what the enemy stole from you! I want to encourage you to dig deep (it may even take some prayer!):
Stop looking and start living
Make some investments in your love
Find a way to say, “I’m sorry” (With no strings attached, allowing the other person to still have their disagreeing view with you.)
Let this 2022 Valentine’s Day be special in your life as you seek to Attain and Sustain: Pure and Lasting Love.
I’ll be praying for you!
G.
Weekly Prayer Focus:
Help me to start living and stop looking for love, knowing I will find lovely things that inspire and spark my love of life.
Inspire me to find ways and time for investing in my valued love relationships.
Strength to release and be able to say I’m sorry.
Help me to find freedom in the release.
