What say you about this thought?

Love is AS MUCH an act of the will as it is
anything else.

Fascinating concept, is it not? This was
spoken by Dr. Ravi Z. and I think I am
just beginning to understand how true
this is. As unromantic as it sounds at
first, I think it is the only true basis for
any kind of lasting love, romantic love
included. Love is not a feeling.

Some days I seem to be able to deal with
this concept better than others, but I think
I'm slowly getting better at it. I don't want
to go overboard and start living like a
robot (though I really don't think there's
much chance of my doing that), but I do
want to balance all my emotionalism out
with a more mature understanding of what
true love means. Sometimes, actually a lot
of times, love hurts, isn't pleasant, causes
pain and discomfort. Just look at the life
of Jesus, Paul, etc. But THIS IS love - that
a man would lay down his life for his friend.
That is what love looks like - not two people
gazing into each other's eyes, feeding off of
the chemicals that are produced in their
brains while being near each other when
their relationship is new and wonderful.

Alright, there's my rant. Here's to coming
to God, even when we don't feel like it, and
doing things like praying and reading the
Bible, for these are our tangible expressions
of love to him that we must die to ourselves
and do, daily.

Lord I come to you, without the feelings for
doing so, but still believing in you and
believing that the feelings will come back.
Give me the strength to continue on in my
journey towards knowing and loving you.
Amen.