Wuv, Twoo Wuv

Today, I read something interesting on love:

"Love itself doesn't scare me, but the fact is, I want to be loved without losing...

I'm scared to love because if I love I can feel loss. I guess it's something you sacrifice, but it's scary..."

I think that there is a lot of legitimacy to these statements. Love CAN BE a very very daunting and scary thing. When someone says "I Love You", thats BIG. I think that people throw that phrase around too much these days WITHOUT ACTUALLY MEANING WHAT THEY SAY. (And sadly enough, not enough people say it when they mean it with hearts)

The true definition (or at least the best one I have heard so far) of love is providing someone the absolute best possible life that you can possibly give over your own life.

So with this definition, love IS self sacrifice. When you put another person first, you ARE taking something that could be yours and give it to someone else, to better their life and make them a better individual.

The "five love languages" (great book btw) are:

Physical love

Gift Giving

Quality Time

Acts of Service

and Words of Encouragement


Somehow, someway, everyone feels the need to have some or all of the above.

However, I believe you can do these things out of love, or a very fake version of love. Love is a very powerful thing. It can move mountains or break a person down in an instant.

I think that one of the best and worst parts of love is that it can be very persuasive. Love can change a persons life in a second. It can be inspiring, heart-warming. It gives people wings to be the person they want to be but never had the courage to be.

Love Gives People LIFE.

The best example of True Love is the love God has for His people. He sacrificed His Son Jesus, who was perfect, on a splintery wooden cross so that maybe one day, we too, the sinning scum of the Earth, could sit up in Heaven where we were meant to be.

That is love. AND that is self-sacrifice. If that does not bring someone out of the dust, I don't know what will.

"Love" can also be very deadly and heartbreaking experience.

I had a guy once tell me he "loved" me. And I am sure to this day that he meant it. I have no doubts that he did not want the best for me. Then he let himself get in the way. He was not happy, and he didn't feel satisfied. It took awhile for me to realize that his love wasn't true and that there were terrible things happening I would have never guessed would happen to me.

Still to this day, I am surprised how long Love's Fake Face held my gaze. I thought it was legit, but turns out it wasn't true. However, I don't let this thing hold me down. I still want the best for the guy. He still deserves love (whether I think so or not)and as a Christian young lady who admires her God and wants desperately to be like Him, I chose to FORGIVE, FORGET and LOVE. (don't forget to forgive and forget because without doing this, are you really loving? Is that building the person up at all?)

My advice is to always love another person whether they return it or not.

Never be afraid to say you love a person but always always ALWAYS mean it.

Be careful for those who display fake love.

Be honest and faithful in your relations but don't put yourself in a position that would cause something to bring the other person down.

And when people do bring you down, (believe me, we make mistakes so this will happen over and over and over again.) forgive them and move on. You would not want people to not forgive you for all your wrongdoings right? unless you are perfect like God then there is no need for forgiveness.

Do ought to others as you would have them do to you

If you try and wrap you head around the way God loves - unconditionally and with full passion, in the long run, you may find that you won't feel like such a loser. =)

I challenge you to forgive someone that maybe you have been holding a grudge on. You may find that you will feel better about yourself at the end of the day. (and they may too! )

I also challenge you to LOVE someone --> NOT because I told you too, but find it in your own heart to put someone else ahead of you. Who knows? There life could be on the line, and you could save it. Reach out and touch someone today. They will thank you for it even though they may never say it. =)

Luke Warm....

Today, I really had to have a good solid laugh at society.

student in my class-

"Hannah, why do you try so hard? You have perfect handwriting, you take good notes, you always ask questions, and you always do really awesome work and ace every test. Why don't you just skip class one day, or "forget" to do your homework for once...It would be good for you."

my response-

"...."

"WHY shouldn't I do all these things????"

student -

"Because you don't have to be perfect to pass the class"

again my response -

"WHY should I not try and product quality work"

student -

"Because your work will not matter in the long run"



Ok, I know several of my family and friends that would fit RIGHT IN with my fellow peer today. People laugh at me for actually doing my homework, studying and being a diligent person in class.



What if everyone was like my peer? They do half-hearted work all the time. They are LUKE-warm people....

...at school, "Cs may get degrees" but if you want to get into certain programs, they wont even look at you if you are only mediocre.

...at work, an employer may receive 1000 applications and will TOSS INTO THE GARBAGE the applications that don't stand out.

...at home, chores won't get done, relationships will lack LIFE and INTIMACY, something may always feel missing

...with GOD, if you slack, you are just another one of those "luke-warm" people who think they have a relationship with God but really, they are just putting on a fake little face and call themselves A "Christian"



Well, here is Hannah's little life lesson for YOU!! =D



I am here to tell you that studiousness and responsibility is NOT just for educational purposes ONLY. It pays to work hard in EVERYTHING YOU DO!! School, work, home life, being a Christian all takes WHOLE-HEARTED WORK - NOT anything less.

By putting all your efforts and reaching for As and Bs (you don't need a 4.0 to be deemed successful) you show you care. Most teachers are in the classroom, not for the pay, but because they love teaching. Why not learn something from their work? There are SO MANY children around the world who will never crack open a book to learn something new. Take advantage of the opportunities you have and BE THANKFUL FOR THEM! (it is not thanking the people who pay for your education, your parents,your peers, your teachers, and even your community if you SLACK and work "to just get by")

Pretend you are an employer : Are you going to pay someone who slacks on the job or the worker who wants to work, who works hard and produces the best work they can EVEN IF they go out of their way to do it? Hello. This is an OBVIOUS ANSWER. Today, it is HARD to find a job (I have been looking for 2 solid months) and it takes people who are OVER-THE-TOP to land the opportunity for work. I think that if you want to find a job (or keep one for that manner) you need to be diligent and put forth your best work because THAT will keep the boss happy and the paychecks coming.

If you do half-A** work at home all the time, from experience I tell you that
#1 - your home will be a mess!
#2 - people will not be happy, and often they will feel like they are not being well taken care of
#3 - others will look at you and think that there is something wrong
I am here to tell you that when the whole family cooperates, you can move mountains. Things will look nice, smell nice, and most important feel nice. Home will be a happier place to live. There will be less drama if everyone just puts in a little more effort than they usually do. Trust me on this one.

You can not call yourself a true Christian if you are luke warm. The Bible says in Revelations 3:16 "Because you are neither hot nor cold - I am about to spit you out of my mouth." God makes it very clear that you can't be a Christian sometimes but not always. (such as 10 minutes a day- the average amount of time a"Christian" American spends with God each day) God wants a relationship with each and everyone of us but He asked that we put our whole hearts into it.

I hope that this explains a little bit why I get a little cranky when people ridicule me for being a hard worker. I also hope that people can be inspired by this to popped their lazy bubble and work a little harder today. You never know, you might just feel better about yourself after the day is over and others will be impressed by positive changes. (believe me, people take notice ALL THE TIME! =) )