A Love Triangle with God

We had our wedding vows renewed in Cana of Galilee. Together with 17 other couples in our pilgrimage group, we experienced being where Jesus  attended a wedding feast. As we all know, it is where he actualized his first miracle of turning water into wine.  This was one of our highlights in the pilgrimage.

Here are my reflections on love and our special relationships:

For a relationship to be faithful and fruitful it has to be a Love Triangle: you, your loved one, and your most Loved One.  God has to be the third person in any relationship, your most Loved One.  There will come a time when the other can be almost unbearable to be with.  One only has to look on God and how He loves us, then we are able to understand how to love the other.  Without a relationship with God, a marriage or a relationship is bound to deteriorate and be "civil" and eventually might break up. We need God's grace to truly and fully love our partner.  True love can only flow from the One who is Love.  For God is Love, and from Him we receive love of which we give to the other.  We love because He first loved us (1 John 4:19).

The bible teaches us how to love. St. Paul exhorts, "Love is patient, love is kind. It is not jealous, [love] is not pompous, it is not inflated,it is not rude, it does not seek its own interests, it is not quick-tempered, it does not brood over injury,it does not rejoice over wrongdoing but rejoices with the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things (1 Cor. 13: 4-7)."  This is how God loves us and more. It can be our own checklist. Just substitute the words "Love and it" to your name (e.g. Kirby is patient...etc.).  This simple guide can help us love one another.

We renew our love for another on a daily basis.  Through a couple prayer, we recommit before God each day for the strengthening of our bond and for the mission He has given us.  We need not wait to reach our Silver or Golden anniversaries for our vows to be renewed.  Special occasions can help us mark our milestones.  But our commitment to God for our relationship is a day to day renewal.  Just like Jesus turning water into wine, He makes what is plain into something sweet and special.  With Jesus, we are renewed and we are able to treat one another with sweetness and specialty. 

May God strengthen our relationships, not only to our spouse, but to our friends, family, and neighbors.  Let us seek Him who is Love, so we may truly know how to love. Beloved, let us love one another, because love is of God; everyone who loves is begotten by God and knows God (1 John 4:7).