Fallin' in Love

The hit song “Fallin” by Alicia Keys begins:

I keep on fallin in love with you
Sometimes I love ya
Sometimes you make me blue
Sometimes I feel good
At times I feel used
Loving you darling
Makes me so confused

I keep on fallin in and out of love with you
I never loved someone way that I loved you

This song details the rollercoaster ride and the uncertain feelings that accompany a person’s journey of “fallin’ in love”. This song is one of many that touch on the process or idea of “fallin in love” and most of us have at one time or another felt the turmoil, confusion and uncertainty of what we describe as “fallin in love”.

Have you ever stopped and thought about the actual meaning of the words “Fallin in Love”? I don’t know about you, but I have never experienced an earthly “fall” that made me a stronger person. When you fall (physically, emotionally, spiritually or mentally), IT HURTS and is almost always a NEGATIVE EXPERIENCE. Falling is accompanied by fear and a sense of being alone because there is no one there to catch you or prevent you from falling. “FALLING” IS A LONELY PLACE.

Love is something that is uplifting and that instills a sense of stability and unity. When we love one another, we don’t “fall” for one another or because of one another we in fact open the door and set in motion the process of belonging to one another.

We explored the notion of “Belonging Together” this week in our small study group. We continued to talk about how “Love Looks” in the Family of God. Simply stated:

· Love always protects. Covering each other in prayer and providing an environment that is safe and where confidentiality dwells. Love and gossip can never occupy the same place. Proverbs 11:13 “A gossip goes around telling secrets, but those who are trustworthy can keep a confidence.”

· Love always trusts. When we love, we believe in and for each other. We make ourselves vulnerable toward others and we intercede on their behalf. We stand “at the altar” in faith for them.

· Love always hopes. We view others with a joyful expectation. We celebrate their achievements as if they were our own. We eradicate the thought of HATE and jealousy when we see others get blessed. We should be inspired and energized when we see God working in others, knowing that the same God loves and will work through us as well. Are you a “fan club” for other people or are your loudest cheers for yourself?

· Love always perseveres. Through thick and thin, when the dust settles, when the chips are down…Are you still around? Proverbs 18:24 “There are “friends” who destroy each other, but a real friend sticks closer than a brother.”

Love is based on commitment. “Fallin in love” is based on feelings and feelings always fail you. As members of the Family or God, we belong and depend on each other and because we belong to each other, we must commit to loving one another; however our love can not be confined within the four walls of the building in which we meet to worship, the house in which we live, the circle of “the lovely” that we surround ourselves with. Real love compels us. It should not be restrained or confined to our “brothers and sisters” in our “Godly Family”. God intended for His love to penetrate our very beings and radiate from us to light the world. This can only be accomplished when we realize that we are connected and that we “Belong Together”.

Is your love based on feelings? Are you ready to make a commitment to love instead of just “fallin in love? If what you call “love” doesn’t protect, trust, hope or preserve, then stop “fallin” and begin to “rise up” in love.

Be Blessed,

B