True Love

In the spirit of Valentine's Day, I've been thinking a lot about LOVE ♥

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, a living apostle of the Lord, spoke on the subject of true love or charity (the pure love of Christ) in an address he gave back in February 2000.  Elder Holland is one of my favorite people on the planet, so I'll be borrowing some a lot of his words.

"True charity, the absolutely pure, perfect love of Christ, has really been known only once in this world—in the form of Christ Himself, the living Son of the living God. . .As in everything, Christ is the only one who got it all right, did it all perfectly, loved the way we are all to try to love. But even though we fall short, that divine standard is there for us. It is a goal toward which we are to keep reaching, keep striving—and, certainly, a goal to keep appreciating."

So how do I develop this Christlike love? As Elizabeth Barrett Browning might say,"How do I love thee?" Elder Holland continues...

"Love is a fragile thing, and some elements in life can try to break it. Much damage can be done if we are not in tender hands, caring hands. To give ourselves totally to another person, as we do in marriage, is the most trusting step we take in any human relationship. It is a real act of faith—faith all of us must be willing to exercise. If we do it right, we end up sharing everything—all our hopes, all our fears, all our dreams, all our weaknesses, and all our joys—with another person."

IF we do it right. How do we do it right? Well, lots of ways. One way we can love right (appropriately, correctly, etc.) is by following God's command to live the law of chastity.

Chastity is sexual purity, a condition that is “pleasing unto God” (Jacob 2:7). To be chaste, you must be morally clean in your thoughts, words, and actions. You must not have any sexual relations before you are legally married. When you are married, you must be completely faithful to your husband or wife.

Sometimes people try to convince themselves that sexual relations outside of marriage are acceptable if the participants love one another. This is not true. Breaking the law of chastity and encouraging someone else to do so is not an expression of love. People who love each other will never endanger one another’s happiness and safety in exchange for temporary personal pleasure.

When people care for one another enough to keep the law of chastity, their love, trust, and commitment increase, resulting in greater happiness and unity.

True to the Faith: Chastity

Decide now

to live the law of chastity.

When temptations come, stand true to the decision you made today to live a chaste life.

It is wrong to commit sexual sins with the thought that you will simply repent later. This attitude is a sin itself, showing irreverence for the Lord and the covenants you make with Him. 

True to the Faith: Chastity

Elder Holland closes with this POWERFUL paragraph:

"In Mormon’s and Paul’s final witnesses, they declare that “charity [pure love] never faileth” (Moroni 7:46, 1 Corinthians 13:8). It is there through thick and thin. It endures through sunshine and shadow, through darkest sorrow and on into the light. It never fails. So Christ loved us, and that is how He hoped we would love each other. In a final injunction to all his disciples for all time, He said, “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you” (John 13:34; emphasis added). Of course such Christlike staying power in romance and marriage requires more than any of us really have. It requires something more, an endowment from heaven. Remember Mormon’s promise: that such love—the love we each yearn for and cling to—is “bestowed” upon “true followers of Christ.” You want capability, safety, and security in dating and romance, in married life and eternity? Be a true disciple of Jesus. Be a genuine, committed, word-and-deed Latter-day Saint. Believe that your faith has everything to do with your romance, because it does. You separate dating from discipleship at your peril. Or, to phrase that more positively, 

Jesus Christ, the Light of the World, is the only lamp by which you can successfully see the path of love and happiness for you and for your sweetheart. How should I love thee? As He does, for that way “never faileth.”

God is our loving Father in Heaven. He wants us to love and be loved. He wants us to love right. He's shown us the way to love. Will you allow Him to bless your current/future relationships by developing CHARITY and living God's law of CHASTITY?