a more different blog on love.

Apparently my brain is getting stuck on topics lately. I've blogged about water twice in the past month-ish (although I think I might've only published one of them? I don't remember), and now I'm writing about love for the second time.

But it's such a deep topic. It's one of those that could never be overanalyzed. Love is so multi-faceted, and can signify so many different things.

It's interesting to me that there's only one word in the English language for love.

[my inner word nerd is coming out...]

There are four words for love in the Greek language:

agape (αγάπη) is most commonly used in modern day Greek, and refers to real love. You know, like the kind of love where you would do absolutely anything for the person.

eros (έρως) is a sensual passionate love. i.e., getting to know someone in the "Biblical sense".

philia (φιλία) is friend love. It can refer to loyalty among friends, comfortable familiarity with family, etc.

storge (στοργή) is acceptance. Sometimes it has the connotation of a begrudging acceptance, but it's almost always used in reference to an unearned affection.

My point of focus the past couple days has been agape love. It totally blows my mind. It's quite possibly the most beautiful and unselfish thing I've ever witnessed.

There's an older couple at Madison Park (my church in Anderson) who have been married for a lot of years. Over the past few years, the wife has become more and more affected by dementia.

I first met them a couple years ago when I started to become more involved in the worship arts ministry at Madison Park. At that point, the wife was in the beginning stages of Alzheimer's. She would say the same things to me every Sunday (most Sundays she reminded me that she plays violin and would then give me a high five because I "deserved it"), but was otherwise self-sufficient.

By the time I left the church the following summer, she had become somewhat socially inappropriate, and was no longer mentally capable of driving, but was still able to play violin in the orchestra and be an active member of the church choir.

I hadn't seen or thought about her since I stopped attending Madison Park eight months ago, but while I was in Anderson this past month, I couldn't help but notice her in the church choir there.

You see, she kind of stuck out. Not only was she the only female standing smack dab in the middle of the men's section, but she also wasn't really singing. She'd stare off into space for a few minutes, then sing a few words that weren't necessarily a part of the current song, and then she'd look around some more.

It was honestly kind of sad to watch, but at the same time, it was really a neat thing to see. Her incompetence wasn't the neat part; it was the way her husband was there to support her. She probably shouldn't have been in public, but her husband was right there with her watching her every move and making sure she didn't harm or embarrass herself (or anyone else).

Her husband has literally devoted his entire existence to enabling his wife to live the life she wants to. She was standing in the men's section so he could keep a closer eye on her. He stands in her shadow and watches from a distance. If she does anything inappropriate (which is frequent), he gently guides her away from the situation.

She's obviously a very different person now than who she was when they got married.

But he wasn't kidding when he told her,

"For better or for worse.

In sickness or in health.

Until death do us part."

I was looking through the four Greek loves to try to identify which of these was most closely linked to the love I saw this man show his wife, and I couldn't decide on just one. His love for his wife is so deep that it encompasses all four of these loves. Sure, there's probably not much eros in their relationship at this point, but he displays the other three loves in an unmistakeable way.

The interaction between this couple is the closest thing to God's love that I can ever recall seeing. Sure, a lot of people are of the opinion that God is a harsh and critical deity. But all I know for certain is what I've experienced, and what I've experienced is that God is a god of unconditional, unmerited, irrational love.

Regardless of what I do or how far away I try to run, God's never stopped loving me. He's never stopped providing for me. I don't understand it. But I can't deny its truth.

Love always protects,

always trusts,

always hopes,

always perseveres.

-1 Corinthians 13:7

lately.

I've done a lot of driving lately.

{Seriously. Close to 1500 miles in the past 11 days.}

I've started learning Russian lately.

{So far I know the alphabet and numbers 1-10.}

I've tried to start reading again lately.

{I've read maybe 100 pages within the last year. And that's probably being generous.}

I've been learning to love lately.

{It's harder than it looks. It's also more rewarding than I could've imagined.}

I've been worrying about money lately.

{I guess that makes me normal.}

I've gotten really into fresh fruit lately.

{It just tastes so good.}

I've been skyping a lot lately.

{It helps me to miss my faraway friends less.}

I've been learning lately.

Learning about myself.

Learning about others.

Learning about God.

Learning about peace.

Learning about contentment.

It's funny how you can have all the degrees in the world, but there's always going to be more to learn.

I guess that's why we have God.

Friends.

Experiences.

Pain.

They shape us into who we are. They teach us things we couldn't learn any other way.

I was listening to the radio today as I was driving. The question was posed, "How can I know God loves me?"

Sunday School answer?

Jesus loves me this I know,

For the Bible tells me so.

(Or I guess there's always Romans 5:8... "God demonstrates His love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.")

Real answer?

I'm not sure.

The question is so simple and so fundamental that we tend to gloss over it.

It's one of those things that I've always accepted as truth without questioning it or giving it much thought.

I got stuck on this question.

I thought about it for a while, discovered I didn't have any conclusions, and then promptly dismissed it.

And then I started reading some old journal entries of mine.

I came across one where I'd written, "Bondye konnen tout bagay. Bondye komprann tout bagay."

God knows everything. God understands everything.

Such a simple couple of sentences. But such a comforting concept.

I realized that was my answer.

How can we know God loves us? He knows everything and understands everything.

He has it all under His control. He knows what's happening, even when we don't. (Especially when we don't.)

He knows everything. He understands everything.

Everything.

My finite mind can't even understand the concept of everything.

But who cares? God knows it. He gets it.

Of course He does; He made it.

And He loves His creation.

"But what is man that You are mindful of him?"

--Psalm 8:4a

agua. l'eau. wasser.

Over the past couple months, I've found that one of the most concrete ways I can try to understand God is in water.

(Don't you worry, I'll explain.)

It's always been difficult for me to comprehend how God can be so many things, so many characteristics, all at once. A couple weeks back, I was walking around Radnor Lake in silence with a friend when I had the epiphany that water, like God, displays multiple characteristics at once.

Think about it:

in the context of a waterfall, water is powerful. majestic. dangerous. terrifying.

at the base of that waterfall, the water is still. calm. serene. refreshing.

the same waterfall creates mist, which is almost unnoticeable, but is certainly there if you choose to be aware of its presence.

water is what we drink to sustain our physical bodies. those bodies are composed of 60% water.

it can freeze into a solid. ice in itself can do many things. it can sink the titanic. it can bring relief to an injury. it can enable humans to walk on the surface of a pond.

What a fickle friend, that H2O.

Over the past several days, the town where I live has experienced the worst flooding in its history. Water has become the enemy.

it's killed 30 people.

it's ruined hundreds, if not thousands, of people's cars.

it's left a lot of people without electricity.

it's filled the grand ole opry.

it's picked up houses and carried them away.

photo credit: Lonnie Fowler

I was personally unaffected. Well, for the most part. We lost power for a day, and our water heater is out of commission, but otherwise my house and roommates have come away from the flooding unscathed.

But the water is still everywhere.

It isn't forcing itself on me.

It's stayed out of my house.

But it's very present.

How God-like is that?!

He's all over the place.

Our very existence screams His name.

Yet He allows us to ignore it if we choose to.

If we want, we can deny His presence.

We can choose to drive on the roads that aren't flooded.

But that doesn't change the fact that He's there.

photo credit: Lonnie Fowler

Open up the sky; rain down Your love.

I don't care if I never get enough.

I just want to be caught in that flood

So open up the sky.