Love Is...

It was complete darkness as we got in the car and drove to the trailhead.  At 3 am it was still cold enough to see your breath when we took our first climbing steps.  For a few long hours, we hiked with only the light of our headlamps guiding us up the continuous stairs of rock.  The air was getting thin as we made it to higher elevation.  Step and breathe, step and breathe.  Strength and every ounce of energy required to keep going.

The morning we left for Colorado my boyfriend started feeling a sore throat.  It continued to get worse throughout the trip until it was difficult to eat or drink; however, knowing that I had been looking forward to experiencing a summit with someone I cared about, we started the ascent that morning anyway.  After hiking 6 miles the sun finally started to rise as we reached over 12,000 feet.  It was then, during that hike, that I saw an example of what love is.  Willing to put everything he may have wanted for himself aside to make my dreams come true, I will never forget our time together and conversations on the mountain that day.

It can be so easy to overlook those acts of love and take them forgranted, or forget the reasons why you love someone.  Next time you notice that unselfish act, or are sitting with someone you love, play the simple game of remembering the things that they do for you that shows what love is.  Having the attitude of recognizing the love acts over the negative can make a world of difference.   

This Easter, start by remembering and having the conversation with God, about what He did for you that shows what love truly is.

Love never gives up.
Love cares more for others than for self.
Love doesn't want what it doesn't have.
Love doesn't strut,
Doesn't have a swelled head,
Doesn't force itself on others,
Isn't always "me first,"
Doesn't fly off the handle,
Doesn't keep score of the sins of others,
Doesn't revel when others grovel,
Takes pleasure in the flowering of truth,
Puts up with anything,
Trusts God always,
Always looks for the best,
Never looks back,
But keeps going to the end.

Love never fails.

1 Corinthians 13

The Message