Love-to-Love You Baby…
By Sharon C. Jenkins
Master Communicator
http://www.sharonjenkins.com

The romantic notion of a handsome man pursuing me, even in my twilight years brings a smile to my face.  It seems as though we never give up hope in finding “the one.”  For all my liberated sisters who have achieved that wholeness on their own, more power to you.  I say that with the utmost love for you and respect for your chosen pathway.   I still fancy the notion of Prince Charming showing up on a white horse and whisking me away to an enchanted island of happily ever after.  As the words of the Donna Summer’s song, Love to Love You Baby run through my mind, I find my capability to hold on to that notion better prepares my heart for heavenly things.  The promise of eternal life becomes more real to me as I wrap my arms around the notion that a Prince will show up one day on a white horse to rescue me from this world as I presently know it to carry me to a promised mansion on streets of gold.

That very notion may seem preposterous to some, but it is my truth.  Lately, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about Jesus’ statement of “love being the greatest of these.”  When I study other religions, even though some of their premises are “good” they are lacking in this area.  I look around at our world today and people are running at a pace that is far too fast to achieve things that will not last.  For example, climbing that career ladder of success, building that dream house, or driving that limited edition Mercedes.  Seeking these things are not bad, but when accomplishing these things puts your love life on the back burner, than it is time to reevaluate our priorities. 

I speak from experience; at a certain time in my life, I found myself void of love and my “cup runneth over” with things.  When that wasn’t enough I was forced to look at my love life and the fruits there of.  The questions I asked myself then and I am still asking myself are:  Do I love God with all of my heart?  What does that look like?  Is He happy with the way I love Him?  Is He happy with the way I love others?  I came away from that experience with the knowing that I would spend the rest of my life pursuing Him and attempting to make His heart smile.   I believe that when Christ spoke of love, He became a living example so that I could get it right.  He didn’t leave me without a tutor, nor did He leave me alone.  The Holy Spirit, my constant companion shows me new and innovative ways to love God better and how to love “the brethren” continuously.  I am a willing student and He is a willing teacher.

In a world where “love” is often confused with sex or lust, I sincerely believe that in order to get it right we must revisit God’s original intent for love.  Love demonstrated by God was His faultless crucified son on a cross in between two criminals who deserved death.  How does that relate to love “for such a time as this?”  Imagine yourself on that cross for a second, carrying every sin that had been committed, was being committed, and will be committed.  Burdened down with the sins of every possible man, woman, or child to ever be born on this earth and you did nothing but volunteer to be a sacrificial lamb for a humankind that cried out, “Crucify Him!” when justice should have dictated a different response from those who you professed to love.  When you put things in that perspective, love takes on a different face, the face of unconditional love.  If I spend a lifetime trying to achieve it and only reach that pinnacle on my last day of breathing, I am convinced that like that ugly dark day on Golgotha as with Jesus’, my life will not have been lived in vain.  I would have offered to mankind more than a cup of water, I would have offered them the gift of unconditional love, just like my Savior.