Daily Digest #187

Jesus answered them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin." —John 8:34

I learned that to get over a certain thing, one has to divert one's self to other useful things. Just like in sinning, instead of keeping strict rules to avoid it (where we usually fail because we justify that we are only human, and are natural-born sinners) or engaging ourselves to absurd repressions, why don't we make ourselves useful and express love in every opportunity?

When we commit ourselves to love -- LOVE as defined in Jesus' 2 greatest commandments, and as stated in 1 Corinthians 13 -- we also commit ourselves to keeping away from sin, which makes us slaves of love instead of sin.

I would like to share this article to you (read below). May you be enlightened as well. May we choose to love everyday. Pray always.

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Love Is a Choice

2008/11/25

… That you may love the Lord your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the Lord is your life, and he will give you many years in the land he swore to give to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Deuteronomy 30:20 (NIV)

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Love is a choice and a commitment. You choose to love or you choose not to love.

Today we've bought into this myth that love is uncontrollable, that it's something that just happens to us; it's not something we control. In fact, even the language we use implies the uncontrollability of love. We say, "I fell in love," as if love is some kind of a ditch. It's like I'm walking along one day and bam! – I fell in love. I couldn't help myself.

But I have to tell you the truth – that's not love. Love doesn't just happen to you. Love is a choice and it represents a commitment.

There's no doubt about it, attraction is uncontrollable and arousal is uncontrollable. But attraction and arousal are not love. They can lead to love, but they are not love. Love is a choice.

You must choose to love God; he won't force you to love him (Deuteronomy 30:20). You can thumb your nose at God and go a totally different way. You can destroy your life if you choose to do that. God still won't force you to love him. Because he knows love can't be forced.

And this same principle is true about your relationships: you can choose to love others, but God won't force you to love anyone.