Unconditional?

As long as she looks good...
As long as he makes me feel good...
As long as she satisfies what I want...
As long as he makes me laugh...
As long as she doesn't hurt me...
As long as he doesn't hurt me...

Sound familiar?

Whenever we think of "true love", we often picture the fairy tale fantasy, you know, the fairy tale every little girl dreams of. Prince Charming, charging in on his trusty steed, slaying any atrocious beast that dares threaten his love, the beautiful princess, and then sweeping her off of her feet, he says the perfect words and she responds in the perfect way, and they ride into the sunset where they live happily ever after. Clean cut, simple, and everyone ends up happy forever.

But in the realities of our experience, as we search out love in this world, how much more often do we realize that forever seems to have a very real beginning and an even more real end? And as we seek out love over and over and over again we are so many times drawn into this cycle of elation and then ultimately disappointment, until we are left struggling with the notion that maybe love just isn't all it's made out to be. That we should just be prepared to be let down, because we can never live up to the standards of love.

We can never meet the conditions necessary to see love thrive.

But let's think about this...we've already established that God is love. So if love truly does have conditions we must meet, then in order to discover the love of God, to be embraced and blessed by Him, there are also certain requirements that we must fulfill, right?

Pray every day.
Read your Bible.
Go to church.
Don't lie.
Honor your parents.
Don't envy.
Don't steal.
Don't think about that.
Don't say this.
Do this.
Do that.
And this. And that...and that...and that...

And if you don't, God is going to withhold that love until you submit to the system.

"What governments have not always been able to do, religions have accomplished with amazing effectiveness. They keep people in line...Ironically this is where so many have a problem with Jesus. For centuries the church has been telling us if we want God to love us, we need to follow the rules. It's been far more important to focus on the sin problem than the love problem. This is the only way the institution can maintain control over our lives. After all, if love is unconditional, what will keep them following our rules? Don't we want people, first and foremost, to be good? If our goal is to get people to conform, you can accomplish that without love, but you can't maintain a civilization without the rule of law....
What in the world would happen if people actually began discovering the actual message of Jesus Christ--that love is unconditional? What would happen if we began to realize that God was not, in face, waiting for us to earn His love, but that He was passionately pursuing us with His love? What would happen if the word got out that Jesus was offering His love freely and without condition?"
(Erwin McManus in "Soul Craving")

What indeed?

People, we're human. If it is at all possible, we are going to screw it up in some way shape or form. It's a fact of life, a harsh one yes but a fact nonetheless. Some guy named Murphy actually put it this way and I guess people thought it was so good they actually made it into a scientific law, Murphy's Law: If something can go wrong, it will go wrong.

But that's the beauty of the Love of God. He doesn't care in the least. He already knows it's going to go wrong, and He simply does not care. Because His love is absolutely and forever without condition.

Sounds great.
As long as she looks good...
As long as he makes me feel good...
As long as she satisfies what I want...
As long as he makes me laugh...
As long as she doesn't hurt me...
As long as he doesn't hurt me...

Are we as humans really capable of reproducing such a seemingly impossible concept?
Erwim McManus goes on to say, "We know in the pit of our stomachs that if love is conditional, it can't really be love at all. We also know that if love is unconditional, we are neither the sources nor the instigators of such love, which again is a part of our conflict. We want what we do not give. We long for what we seem incapable of producing."

And here we come full circle. The love that we show others is the beautiful result of the Love that is flowing in and through us as we continue to learn and grow in our relationship with God, who just so happens to be Love itself. I mean we spit in His face, constantly and consistently turn our backs on Him, we even killed Him! Yet still He pursues us with reckless abandon. And as we learn of Him and His Love, so will we also be able to overcome the idiocies of our human nature and truly at least attempt to grasp the concept of Love being utterly unconditional. Easy? Oh no. But how often is it really? And how worth the effort of trying when compared with the sheer grandness of the reward.

And granted, there are definitely times when we just need to realize that something isn't working, especially if it is destructive in any way, but that doesn't mean that we should allow simple shortcomings to define the course of a relationship. Because how well aware we are that we all have them. But besides, we're talking about the discovery of Love here, not the fleeting feelings of a summer romance, though of course Love could be sowing its seeds through that as well. In any case it's yet another matter of wisdom. Thank God He promises to give it whenever we simply ask.

A thought. Something we could all use when honestly and passionately considering our discovery of the Love we so desperately desire.