Love.....has it changed?
Life Experience
A few weeks ago I was driving down a main road in a small local town, and I saw three teenage girls walking down the street. Immediately, I went into reverie of when I was that age. It made me chuckle. I don't know about you, but when I was a teen age girl walking down the street with 2-3 of my friends, we would laugh, tell jokes, try to crack each other up (goodness knows what we would say). Often times in our jest, we would push each other back and forth, jostling on the sidewalk....even jump on each others backs for an unexpected "piggy back" ride. Can anyone else go here with me? Oh the memories. :) My key point is that we were in our own little world, not paying attention to anything around us. We didn't know it at the time, but what we were doing was, loving each other: showing affection, getting to know each other, sharing stories, being present in the moment, strengthening our bond of sisterhood. The last thing we were focused on were upcoming cars.
So as I am driving down the street, seeing these three young teenagers, I am prepared for one to jet out towards my car at any moment. But they did't. Some of you parents, and young people are going to know what I am going to say. They were all three texting. They were in their own world; but really, each were in their own individual worlds. :)
Question
So it made me ponder. My group of friends were showing love by behaving a fool and interacting as a group. And I am not insinuating that those same girls may not do that at times as well. But in this case they were together yet, separate. I may be wrong, but I do believe that they were showing love to someone, perhaps those they were texting, perhaps even those they were with. Perhaps in today's world, being with someone while texting is exhibiting love. The world is changing, has how we exhibit love changed as well? So that is the question that I am posing? And if the answer is yes, which I believe in some ways it has, what are the benefits and what are the pitfalls?
Request
Please comment with your thoughts, insights and life experiences. But I also ask that if we are to Go Boldly in this world an examine our daily activities in the light of God's Word, challenge yourself to use scripture to support your comment; but please do not let this stop you from sharing. It is your insights I seek most. (Perhaps those who are doing life with us can support us with a scripture to enhance our thoughts.) :) I myself see benefits and pitfalls with our changing world. Please see my comments (mere samples) below as a start of a discussion.
A few weeks ago I was driving down a main road in a small local town, and I saw three teenage girls walking down the street. Immediately, I went into reverie of when I was that age. It made me chuckle. I don't know about you, but when I was a teen age girl walking down the street with 2-3 of my friends, we would laugh, tell jokes, try to crack each other up (goodness knows what we would say). Often times in our jest, we would push each other back and forth, jostling on the sidewalk....even jump on each others backs for an unexpected "piggy back" ride. Can anyone else go here with me? Oh the memories. :) My key point is that we were in our own little world, not paying attention to anything around us. We didn't know it at the time, but what we were doing was, loving each other: showing affection, getting to know each other, sharing stories, being present in the moment, strengthening our bond of sisterhood. The last thing we were focused on were upcoming cars.
So as I am driving down the street, seeing these three young teenagers, I am prepared for one to jet out towards my car at any moment. But they did't. Some of you parents, and young people are going to know what I am going to say. They were all three texting. They were in their own world; but really, each were in their own individual worlds. :)
Question
So it made me ponder. My group of friends were showing love by behaving a fool and interacting as a group. And I am not insinuating that those same girls may not do that at times as well. But in this case they were together yet, separate. I may be wrong, but I do believe that they were showing love to someone, perhaps those they were texting, perhaps even those they were with. Perhaps in today's world, being with someone while texting is exhibiting love. The world is changing, has how we exhibit love changed as well? So that is the question that I am posing? And if the answer is yes, which I believe in some ways it has, what are the benefits and what are the pitfalls?
Request
Please comment with your thoughts, insights and life experiences. But I also ask that if we are to Go Boldly in this world an examine our daily activities in the light of God's Word, challenge yourself to use scripture to support your comment; but please do not let this stop you from sharing. It is your insights I seek most. (Perhaps those who are doing life with us can support us with a scripture to enhance our thoughts.) :) I myself see benefits and pitfalls with our changing world. Please see my comments (mere samples) below as a start of a discussion.
Family is very important to me, and I desire closeness, love and unity. Mat 12:25 tells us a house divided will not stand. Well, right now text is my only form of communication with some very dear family members. I praise our Lord that I can love on my family in that way. :)
ReplyDeletePhones are very demanding with all of their functions today, I am a Martha (showing love through my activities). But when I spend time with a friend or loved one, it is my desire to put my phone aside and be a Mary. I want to just being present, showing love intentionally within the moment, following Mary's standard set in Luke 10:38-42; as she simply sat at Jesus' feet and listened to what he said..
ReplyDeleteThe scenario you described is a familiar one. I see it as more of a communication/social issue than a love issue. Will the way we communicate ultimately affect the way we love? Possibly. It is sad for me to see teens, families, coworkers gathered together, but missing out on one another's company. Sometimes even though we are physically present, we are lost in our tech world and inattentive in an emotional, intellectual, or spiritual manner.
ReplyDeleteI tried to think of a scripture verse related to this topic and honestly, what came to mind was the familiar verse from 1 John 4:11-12 "Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and His love is made complete in us." I am afraid if we miss out on truly loving others, we miss out on God's blessing within us. I believe He expects His children to love others intentionally. As we experience life with our friends and spend time sharing thoughts, hurts, and joys, we grow closer in relationship to those we love. The lack of face to face communication concerns me for both young and old. Much is lost in translation from text to text. You cannot beat good old fashioned conversation, with body language to observe and emotion to detect. (Boy, I'm sounding old).
Pennie, if you are old, then I guess I am as well. I treasure the time I am able to spend, one on one with my loved ones. You bring up a key point. I too believe that God desires for us to love his children "intentionally." I pray we can begin by focusing on those around us, giving them our full attention, showing them that they are loved. Crazy schedules often prohibit one on one time, but it is always something to strive carving time out for. :) Thank you for your insights.
DeleteYes Pennie! Even in email I have found that things can be taken the wrong way. Careful inflection and clarification is key. With technology today everything is sent in a heartbeat in abbreviated fashion. My son rebuked me when I answered a text with K. Somehow that has a different inflection than OK.
ReplyDeleteThere is love in this evolved form of communication. If you think back talking on the phone for hours to your friends was the norm (feeling old). The blessing comes from having the love of God in your heart. When sharing that with others in whatever fashion it should come through in whatever method of deliverance. Even a glance can show love. God gave us this complex gift of love and we are reminded in Gal 5:22 that the first fruit of the spirit is love. If the friends above have that kind of love, they share the best kind of love there is.
Thank you Charlin, you offer a unique perspective. But so true. Love can be shown through in any form of communication. But it also takes a level of trust from the reader as well, because as you said in the first part of your response, it is so easy to misinterpret. Feelings can easily be hurt and things can get out of hand quickly, over a simple mis-communication. So written communication of any kind really requires us to offer the author some level of the "benefit of doubt." Can I ask a question? Why is it that when we receive an email, text, or written letter, that we find offensive or find something...off putting about it, that we (and I am not saying always, but sometimes, just go with me here), allow our head to go to the negative. Not offering the benefit of the doubt; even let our heads swirl in the negative for a while. And my biggest question is, why don't we simply just pick up the phone and call the author and address the offensive point and clear up the misunderstanding immediately? Let's be honest, it usually is just our interpretation and truly a misunderstanding, so why do we allow ourselves to get all worked up? And if is not just a misunderstanding and it is a real problem, isn't is better to get the issue resolved quickly? Are we not all sisters in Christ? Are we not commanded to love one another? We all struggle with this, why is that? Just a question......what are your thoughts?
DeleteForgot to conclude with my answer to the question. No, love has not changed if it the timeless kind that is of God.
ReplyDeleteI do believe our new generation has gotten away from face to face communication. It is sad because I feel they often are afraid to communicate to people in person. They are missing out on that face to face communication & actually living in the moment. I don't know if that means they love any less or is it a matter of convenience or habit. I have been out to dinner with my family & have had to tell both of my kids to put their phones away. I think they are often afraid of missing out on something. I have seen adults do the same thing as well. I asked my son about this scenario & he said he often plays on his phone out of boredom. He said when he is with his friends he does put his phone away. There are many young people that have trouble communicating & I think the problem is technology. It can be a good thing however when used in excess, it can become a problem or addiction. I truly feel sorry for the younger generation because I believe they are faced with so many issues at a much younger age than my generation ever had to deal with. I was looking for scripture that spoke about this issue and found this. "Do not conform to the pattern of the world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind." -Romans 12:2
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