Love is a Gift

(From "Let Be Me a Woman", by Elisabeth Elliot, chapter 22 Commitment, Gratitude, Dependence)

Many couples have shared this loyalty (a loyalty not only to each other but a common higher loyalty - loyalty to God, that is a sound basis for marriage) and have found that their marriage was far from ideal. As long as we are "in the flesh" we'll have trouble in the flesh. But God knows the purpose of the heart. He sees the direction a couple has taken when they have made up their minds to seek "things which are above". There is a whole world of difference between those who look only for their own happiness in this world and those who know that their true happiness lies in the will of God.

When they encounter trouble they know where to turn, for they know that they are still under the command of God, they are not forsaken. They know that they are insufficient in themselves, that human love breaks down, and that there is never a point at which they can say, "we've arrived," and are no longer in need of grace.

You know, I am sure, that your love is a gift. And if it is a gift you are grateful to the Giver. To acknowledge your gratitude to Him is also to acknowledge your dependence, to acknowledge above all the authority of Christ.