And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. (1Cor 13:13)

LOVE. A four-letter word that seems so simple but its meaning is quite complex. Poets, playwrights and troubadours from centuries back have tried to put into words what love is all about but it is still something as vague now as it was before.

Perhaps it is best explained by Hellen Keller. She said, “The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart.” The reason why love cannot be described by one word is because it is a feeling distinctly unique for each individual. Valentine’s Day is celebrated every February in honor of St. Valentine. There are several stories behind the tradition of exchanging love letters and giving flowers and chocolates to our loved ones. One is that of a Valentine who sacrificed himself to help Christians escape Roman prisons. The other is of a Valentine who went against the order of Emperor Claudius II and continued marrying couples.

There is one love story which transcends generations of practice which has remained constant throughout history. It is the story of the love of God for mankind, when He sacrificed His only begotten Son to give us new life.

So what is love? Leo Tolstoy encapsulates the essence of this question: “Love is life. All, everything that I understand, I understand only because I love. Everything is, everything exists, only because I love.”. Only, truth be told, everything exists because HE loves us.

This article appears in the February, 2014 issue of TLA Blaze. Click here to download a copy of this newsletter.