"we as christians, we as the church, sometimes, in our modern culture, in our media, we're such a media saturated culture, i think we've really lost sight of what is truly important in our lives and in the life of the church. i think we get so caught up in watching other people's lives and caring about our celebrities just getting into TV shows or movies or whatever that we've really lost the ability to truly love one another. we've lost the sense of what it is to care about our neighbor, and care about those around us 'cause it's so easy w/ so many distractions around that we forget that those people exist. i think that we as a church need to be known as people who are loving, people who care, people who don't spend so much time held up in our houses w/ our computers or tv's, but people who are actually involved in other's lives, and that means the lives of those in the church and those outside.. the lives of our families, our friends. i think we really need to start fighting for the ability to love, because we become so numb to each other that we get so caught up in other people's pain and other people's joy that we're unable to feel our own. and i think that's the biggest tragedy of our modern culture, and it kills me. and i'm not gonna let that happen to me, i'm not gonna let it happen to those i love, because i'm gonna let them know that i love them, and i hope the respond in current." – Andrew Osenga of The Normals ------------------------------- listen to "Don't Hold Back"

C Wrote this in her diary.

As little experience as I've had in the relationship world, I understand the concept of "love". It took me a very long time to learn it, but it's something many people never find out. Love is not attachment, because love does not smother. Love is not about buying gifts because love cannot be bought. Love is simply one person seeing everything there is to another person, knowing who they are, and still wanting to be around them because of it, not in spite of it.

This was a posting on one of the Normals message boards.

"The greatest thing you'll ever learn is just to love and be loved in return." -I read this on the quotes page. I love Moulin Rouge too, so know that I am NOT INSULTING IN ANY WAY the person who quoted it. This is just a thought for reflection. BUT as I think about this quote, it is so backwards from the truth about love. The Bible would have it: The greatest thing you'll ever learn is TO BE loved, and TO LOVE IN RETURN. -- "We love, because He first loved us." (1 John 4.19) He started loving us while we were hating him (see Romans 5).

My Response to it.

Okay Luke trying to interprate your interpetation is giving me a headache. Your point is just an exercise in sematics and I think that takes away from the entire beauty of the quote. It's beauty exists in it's simplicity. It is a simple statement that can remind you of how insignficant alot of things are. So many people I know seem to be overly concerned with love, or the lack of it (myself included). We get wrapped up in all the minor details, in our own fears. We think that we need to do all things major things for the people we love, buy them gifts and what not...but really all we have to do is just love them. ...And at the same time all people want is to be loved but they are so afraid of being hurt or hurting that other person, that they are afraid to love, there are all these extranious details holding them back. This is why it is so importent that we learn to be loved in return. ....Learn to be Loved in Return. It is simple to state, and so difficult to practice.