What Is Love?

I don't know about you, but when I see a heart, the first thing I think of is love. We think and talk a lot about love, don't we? We often say things such as, "I love ice cream" or "I love to play baseball." We also say to our parents or special friends, "I love you."

A group of professionals asked some children from age four to eight, "What does love mean?" Here are some of the answers the children gave.

"Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving cologne and they go out and smell each other." -Kari, age 5

"Love is when you go out to eat and give somebody most of your French fries without making them give you any of theirs." -Chrissy, age 6

"Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt, then he wears it every day." -Noelle, age 7

"Love is when mommy gives daddy the best piece of chicken." -Elaine, age 5

"Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day." -Mary Ann, age 4

"Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure the taste is OK." Danny - age 7

If I were to ask you to tell me what love is, what would your answer be? (Give time for responses from the children if time permits.) I think if we really want to know what love is, the best place to find the answer is in the Bible. God not only told us what love is, he showed us.

The Bible says, "God showed how much he loved us by sending Jesus to die for us, even though we were sinful." Wow! That's real love! God loved us so much that He sent His Son to die for us even though we did not deserve it.

You know that list of answers that children gave to the question, "What is love?" Well, here is one more.

"God could have said magic words to make the nails fall off the cross, but He didn't. That's love." I think that really says it all, don't you?

Dear Father, we thank you for loving us even when we did not deserve it. Help us to love others in the same way. Amen.