Relate to Love
It is interesting to me how interchangeable the word love is. We use it as a descriptive word to convey our feelings toward a particular object such as a car, a song, a movie, a certain food, or a favorite outfit and the list goes on and on. We will then use the same word to illustrate our feelings for a particular person. I would submit to you that love is not an adjective but, first and foremost, a noun then, secondly, a verb. Can anyone lay claim to knowing what real love is apart from knowing God and exemplifying him in their everyday life? Certainly we cannot know the depth of love, however, it was God that first introduced humanity to love and gave to us the clearest and most powerful expression of love that the world and all of creation has ever known.
"...I would suggest knowing real love is to know God and anything less is just a cheap imitation."
Odette: You know Will, this is so true and I am so excited about this article. To add to your point, I would suggest knowing real love is to know God and anything less is just a cheap imitation. The bible teaches us that not knowing God is not knowing love, for God is love (1 John 4:8) The sentiment may be strong towards someone and the emotions may run deep. I would further suggest it to be nothing more than a powerful infatuation but a far cry from love. The abuser uses the word love after the abuse; the fornicator uses the word love with each person he or she lays. The adulterer uses the word love when speaking to their spouse. I think you get my point. At the end of the day love is not defined by what you SAY, but what you do.
Will: I couldn't agree with you more! Even
as we write this article people are crisscrossing the city in search of
the perfect gift to give that special someone. We would be wise to
pause and reflect upon God and his tremendous love for us in that he
gave his only son to die for our sins so that we by faith in him should
live through his righteousness (John 3:16). A love so deep, that the good would suffer for the evil so that the evil could enjoy the good. God?s love willed that he should become as we are that we might become as he is. If
you really want to show how much love you have in your heart, try doing
something for someone you don?t get along with that well. ?If
a man says, I love God, and hates his brother, he is a liar: for he
that loves not his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he
has not seen?? (1 John 4:20)
Although
I enjoy this time of year more than any other, it is difficult to look
out and find the kindness and compassion that the season calls for. The buzz on everyone?s lips, are the deals, the sales, and the specials, with the occasional shout out to God here and there. Certainly
there are more people that claim Christianity by their words, than
there are those that demonstrate it by their actions. Last
time I checked the Christmas season was too celebrate the Saviors
birth, this is the only birthday celebration I know of where the guest
receive gifts and not the honoree.
Odette: My hope is that the reader will walk away from this article with a deeper sense of what they had as it relates to love, or a greater appreciation of what they have. In ones search for love, God should be the standard that determines what is and what is not love. The heart is quite fragile and very easily broken; one should proceed with extreme caution while conducting a thorough investigation of the intent, motive, and objective of anyone that would dare express themselves with the words 'I Love You'.
More articles by Will & Odette Hooks
Can You Keep UP?
Ladies, is your sex life dull? Do you ever feel like you need more? Have you experienced an awkward moment where things just didn't pick UP? Do you end up feeling like you're to blame for HIS lack of stimulation? Well, let's take a deeper look into these downers. Sleeping with a younger man might be
the answer to your problems! But, 'of course, if you love the man you're with, then sex doesn't matter – right?
Well, not according to the hundreds of thousands of women who've passed down old wives tales and sex advice. The Old wives predict that by age
30 a man's sex drive will decrease and a woman's sex drive will increase.
By 30 we've found our G spot, know how to get orgasms from clitoral stimulation, learned a few foreplay moves, and the list goes on. I think it's safe to say that we start feeling ourselves...
However, it is rumored that by age 40 a woman will begin to have the best sex of her life. These old wives tales lead many women to believe that sex after 30 with a man of her same age is down hill.
What happens next? Well, women complain about the lack of good
sex. A lot of men think that women don't want it as much. Truth be told, we do,
and when we aren't sexually satisfied we complain. Some women shift their
sexual frustrations to other areas - like nit picking about any and every
little thing. And here it is, we fault men for thinking "sex is the
answer". When in actuality our actions give them many reasons to believe
that if they give us good sex we'll fall in love and become the good wife.
In defense of women, I must add that this notion of us being under hypnosis by some "good stroking" is not totally our fault. It's the oxytocin; the "cuddle hormone" that makes us feel so in love (after sex).
So, all this energy and zest that we have is why many women (after 30) need a younger man in the bedroom to fulfill their sexual appetites. Well, I don’t kiss and tell, but here's what the study proves regarding men:
According to the Mayo Clinic, by age 30, a man’s #testosterone levels are decreasing by about 1 percent a year.
Around the age 40, many men experience noticeable changes in their sex drive and performance:
- Erections don’t occur as quickly or as automatically.
- It continues to take longer to get an erection after #ejaculation.
- Blood flow to the penis is reduced, so erections are not as firm.
- The #sexual #urge is not as strong.
- The length and girth of the penis reduce slightly over time, often due to fat buildup in the #arteries in the #penis.
WOW! Are you a man who's 30 to 40 years old and NOT experiencing any of these complications? Let us know - help us relate!
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