Love.

"Love is not an emotion, but a conscious act of sacrifice."

I believe that love is my favorite thing to write and talk about. Humanity was created with a craving for love and created to love. We live to find something or someone to be passionate about. "We love because He first loved us." It's hard to love when you've not experienced it yourself. But, when you come to realize that someone has already laid down his life for you, humbled himself to the least for you, endured mockery and suffering for you, then you know what love is.

"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast. It is not proud, it is not rude. It is not self-seeking. Love is not easily angered. It keeps no record of wrong. Love does not delight in evil, but rejoices in the truth. Always hopes, always trusts, always protects, always perseveres--love never fails."

God, thank you for love.

Easter is coming and I'm reminded of Christ's sacrifice. As I quoted at the beginning--this is what love is, Jesus laid down his life for us.

My small group girls and I have been talking about the 5 love languages (words, time, gifts, touch, service) in an attempt to love others as Christ has loved us. How can we show Christ's love to the people around us?

In the first few weeks we practiced love through words. We wrote letters to people as God had led, and made attempts to encourage people verbally, and some girls made eCards and wrote poems. Now for the next few weeks we will practice love through time. Spend time with people--set dates to talk, walk, help someone with something, listen.

In other events, I thought I would mention here--two entries ago I talked about being single. A week or so after writing that entry...ironically...I'm no longer single. I am in a relationship with my very first boyfriend at my quarter century mark (25-y-o). I've had a crush on him since 2008 and had met him when I first arrived in China in 2007. He's special, and I know he's reading this. =) (He's read every single blog entry I've ever written since college). haha. He's special because he puts what God thinks above what others may think. He's unconventional. I like to believe that I go against the grain--but I don't do so nearly as much. I still often run to the comfort of sticking to societal norms and doing things that are safe and less risky--but I desire to be unconventional, I desire to be adventurous. He's funny and silly sometimes; then serious and deep at other times. He likes to help people by serving them. I like those things.

It's tough. My big love language is loving through time. I give people my time and presence to show that I care, but with this long distance relationship--it's nearly impossible to really love in that way. I've found that I need to use words to express love; and strangely, I'm not a person of many words--except when I write.

So here begins a new chapter in my life. <3