Friends For The Journey

One of my favorite movies to watch with Debbie is Moulin Rouge. The movie opens with the poor young writer typing the opening words, “The greatest thing you will ever learn is to love and be loved.”

I always cry when, near the end of the movie, the writer is walking away from the courtesan broken hearted, and she begins to sing to him of her love. One of the actors falls from the scaffolding on a rope and as he swings onto the stage, he yells out his part that he had forgotten: “THE GREATEST THING YOU WILL EVER LEARN IS TO LOVE.....AND BE LOVED!”

I could not agree more. Pity it took me so many years to learn this priceless truth. Below is a brief summary of Rick Warren’s chapter on “WHAT MATTERS MOST” — chapter 16 of the PDL. Cliff notes for busy grad students!

WHAT MATTERS MOST

No matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I’m bankrupt without love. (1Cor. 13:3).

Life is all about love.
Learning to love unselfishly is not an easy task. It runs counter to our self-centered nature. That’s why we’re given a lifetime to learn it.

God wants his family to be known for its love more than anything else. Jesus said our love for each other—not our doctrinal beliefs—is our greatest witness to the world. He said, “Your strong love for each other will prove to the world that you are my disciples.” (John 13:34).

Love cannot be learned in isolation.

THE BEST USE OF LIFE IS LOVE: Love is not a good part of your life; it’s the most important part. The Bible says, “Let love be your greatest aim.” (1Cor. 14:4). Relationships must have priority in your life above everything else in your life?

Life without love is really worthless. Four of the ten commandments are about the relationship with God, while the other six our about relationships with people. All ten have to do with relationships. Relationships, not achievements or the acquisition of things are what matters most in life. Busyness is the great enemy of relationships. The point of life is learning to love—God and his people. Life minus love equals zero.

Love will last forever. Love is eternal: “These three things continue forever: faith, hope and love. And the greatest of these is love” (1Cor. 13:13). As Mother Teresa said, “It’s not about what you do, but how much love you put into it that matters.”

We will be evaluated on our love. God measures our spiritual maturity by the quality of our relationships. In eternity, God will review how we treated other people. Knowing this, Warren suggests that when we wake up every morning, we kneel and pray for God to help us to spend time loving other people that day.

THE BEST EXPRESSION OF LOVE IS TIME
Time is your most precious gift because you only have a set amount of it. You can make more money, but you can’t make more time. When you give someone your time, you are giving them a portion of your life that you’ll never get back. Your time is your life. Relationships take time and effort, and the best way to spell love is “T-I-M-E.”

The most desired gift of love is not diamonds or roses but is focused attention. Love concentrates so intently on another person that you forget yourself at that moment. Love means giving up—yielding my preferences, comfort, goals, security, money, energy or time for the benefit of someone else.

THE BEST TIME TO LOVE IS NOW. You don’t know how long you will have the opportunity. Circumstances change. People die. Children grow up. You have no guarantee of tomorrow. If you want to express love, you had better do it now.

Who do you need to start spending more time with?

The best use of life is love. The best expression of love is time. The best time to love is now.

Point to Ponder: Life is all about love.

Verse to Remember: “The entire law is summed up in a single command: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself’” (Galatians 5:14).

Question to Consider: Honestly, are relationships my first priority? How can I ensure that they are?