Finding True Love

True love is not a feeling. It is the nature of God.

“And they lived happily ever after,” goes the sweet part of the stories we loved when we were younger. Undeniably, every one of us has also been vying for this kind of happy ending. Love, described as a dream that captures the heart, has continued to be the cherished desire of people around the globe.

Yet over the years, the word love has been misinterpreted, misunderstood and misused. Most people don’t really know what it is or where they can find it.

True love is God

When we wonder about true love, it might be good to check the bookshelf near us—the answer can be found in the Bible! The Bible tells us that God Himself is love.

As 1 John 4:7-8 says, “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love.” And we express that love in our relationships with others by following God’s commandments. That’s what will bring about the best results in all we do with and for others (1 John 5:2-3).

God’s love working in my life

When I was almost 2 years old, I loved playing outdoors. One day I got an infection. My parents thought it wasn’t serious, but they started to panic when I was sick for weeks. They were too poor to take me to a hospital; and so one night, they decided to pray together while bringing me into their arms. After the prayer, they were surprised to see that the infection burst out and eventually disappeared.

God’s love was truly working in our lives. When hope appears to be lost, He tells us that He is just a prayer away. Even today, I’ve always felt that God makes miracles in my life. And each day is one. Realizing that I woke up for a brand-new day is already a miracle.

God’s love is the best!

Need-love and gift-love

C.S. Lewis, in his book The Four Loves, differentiated between need-love and gift-love. Need-love would be the love of a child for his mother because he is dependent on her. This love involves meeting one’s need for love. On the other hand, gift-love would be the love of a mother for her child. This love is freely given without expectations.

Likewise, God gives us His gift-love while we have a need-love kind of relationship with Him. He has loved us deeply even when we didn’t love Him in return. However, that doesn’t mean that we cannot grow in giving gift-love. C.S. Lewis stated that gift-love resembles the image of God. It is what God is and what God does. If we aim to be more like Him, we are to give gift-love to others.

This kind of gift-love is God’s love. And this is true love.

For us to find a happily-ever-after ending, we don’t need to read romance novels or watch romantic movies. All we need to do is find God and learn to trust His ways, because He is the One who gives true love. It is God who is true love.

Kathlyn Mae Tiu is currently a college freshman taking up chemical engineering. She attends the Bacolod, Philippines, congregation of the Church of God, a Worldwide Association.

For more about God’s love, see:

• Godly Love: One of God’s Greatest Gifts!
• Love in Action: Prayer Plus
• Love—Only a Word?