"Love is patient, love is kind.
It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.
Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.
It always protects, always trust, always hopes, always perseveres.
Love never fails"
1 Corinthians 13:4-8
These are the words inscribed in the bible, where it describes what love should be. Often, love is misinterpreted as a tingling feeling - an indescribable and mysterious attraction. This however, would be something I would consider as an infatuation. Infatuation in my dictionary is the "unexplained attraction towards a person - a guy or a girl".
In my years of experience of being in a relationship, I've come to realise that love is more that just a simple boy-girl relationship. It is a commitment that one holds dear to her heart. The reason why so many couples have been together and gone apart is that very often they are unable to fully commit themselves to ensure that their relationship work out. In the show "Perfect Cut II " the mother of Michelle Chia actually mentioned that "Relationships odd to be managed and not tested." I find this quote familiarly true. Relationships should be handled with care as it is extremely fragile and can be easily broken by others. A simple act of staring at a person of the opposite sex could encourage jealousy in your partner.
Hence, I would like to give a small piece of advise to those who are in a relationship - try your best to work out your differences. Always be truthful to one another (even if the truth hurts), cause the truth would always reveal itself. And if you think that you can't sustain the relationship anymore, think again! Loving the same person and constantly thinking of ways to continue and sustain your relationship helps you to grow in love and understanding. Therefore strive hard to keep your relationship though the trails that may come your way. =)
It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.
Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.
It always protects, always trust, always hopes, always perseveres.
Love never fails"
1 Corinthians 13:4-8
These are the words inscribed in the bible, where it describes what love should be. Often, love is misinterpreted as a tingling feeling - an indescribable and mysterious attraction. This however, would be something I would consider as an infatuation. Infatuation in my dictionary is the "unexplained attraction towards a person - a guy or a girl".
In my years of experience of being in a relationship, I've come to realise that love is more that just a simple boy-girl relationship. It is a commitment that one holds dear to her heart. The reason why so many couples have been together and gone apart is that very often they are unable to fully commit themselves to ensure that their relationship work out. In the show "Perfect Cut II " the mother of Michelle Chia actually mentioned that "Relationships odd to be managed and not tested." I find this quote familiarly true. Relationships should be handled with care as it is extremely fragile and can be easily broken by others. A simple act of staring at a person of the opposite sex could encourage jealousy in your partner.
Hence, I would like to give a small piece of advise to those who are in a relationship - try your best to work out your differences. Always be truthful to one another (even if the truth hurts), cause the truth would always reveal itself. And if you think that you can't sustain the relationship anymore, think again! Loving the same person and constantly thinking of ways to continue and sustain your relationship helps you to grow in love and understanding. Therefore strive hard to keep your relationship though the trails that may come your way. =)
Have you ever liked someone of the same gender?
Unknown to many adults, teenagers are sometimes confused about their own identity. Personally, I have liked someone of the same gender when I was in Secondary School. It was a senior who was a year older than me. Her behaviour was much like a boy and yet still have lovely features of a girl. This crush lasted for about a year before it eventually faded away. It was quite an experience since I was in an all girls' school.
However, as I grew older, I came to realise that God has His plans for me. God provided me with my boyfriend who is a person whom I can relay on, confide in and express my love too. I also realise that the crush that I once had was just something really small and insignificant. Some may even say that I was so silly to have such crushes. Oh well... Those are the days. Quite fun and quite cool. Haha!
What about you? Have you ever liked someone of the same gender?
Infatuation…The discussion we had intrigued me to ponder much more about this word. Infatuation has indeed become a very popular model for love itself, directing the most critical intimate choices of numerous singles. I like Wikipedia’s definition of it as “the state of being completely carried away by unreasoned passion; one which is intense but short-lived”. It is officially defined as a kind of affliction and also known as “being a Fool for love”.
ReplyDeleteAlthough infatuation seems to be a reflection of foolishness and we all know it’ll never last, why is it so irresistible? Perhaps I can understand it from a biological point of view. When infatuated we experience a surge of dopamine that rushes through our brain causing us to feel good. Norepinephrine flows through the brain stimulating adrenaline production, and finally the primary sexual arousal hormone oxytocin will cause us to experience irrational romantic sentiments. These chemicals sometimes override the brain activity that governs logic.
We may understand that infatuation is illogical and temporal, but it is extremely annoying when we attempt to suppress and overcome it. Trying painstakingly to control the overwhelming waves of thoughts and emotions inside, we may be puzzled by how much this infatuation can affect us. At times, we may even think of letting go and just simply dive head-on into it. Hence, we have to be extremely careful and bear in mind that infatuation is not love, in fact, very far from it.
1 Corinthians 13 is one of my favourite passages in the bible. Its definition of love is just so beautiful and perfect. However, I’ve always find it a real challenge to demonstrate such a love. This love that “never fails” refers to God’s love (agape) as God is love and He is eternal. I totally agree with your realization that love is “a commitment that one holds dear to” as agape love is indeed based upon a commitment of a decision. It soars above other forms of love such as eros (something close to infatuation/crush) or philia (friendship), as it is neither held captive by environment/situation nor expectations/perceptions. It is unconditional, constant and eternal.
I’ve experienced how amazing God’s love is and I want to learn to love others with agape love. I particularly like the verse “It always protects, always trust, always hopes, always perseveres” as it explicitly revealed to us the four greatest virtues of love! Personally, I’ve learnt how important they are in any kinds of relationship, especially BGRs/marriages. True love is always about giving and learning. Once, a man shared with his friend that the relationship with his fiancé is like schooling to him. When he got married, he told his friend that he isn’t at the point of “university graduation”, but instead, he had just begun “junior school”.