Love Above Knowledge
Left foot still hurts. Took another half day of urgent leave. Feels so lame, in all the meanings of the word.
Was surfing a few blogs when I came across one with those personal surveys. Reminded me of a conversation I had with someone recently which goes something like this.
muso: i still can't get over the fact that you're going to do this.
someone: that shows how little you know about me.
muso: well, you don't make it easy.
someone: of course.
Well, for people (in general) who are not so ready to be understood, they'll probably ignore such a survey even when tagged. Possible reasons: there are better things to do, too personal, too trivia, too lame, or simply, "what for?". Or it depends on who tagged them. I'm just guessing.
What I can say for myself is that by God's grace and His own daily assured love for me, I've yet to give up. But I'm learning that it's more realistic to stop wondering why it's so difficult. I used to feel hurt that the person I want to know more about has the "it's for me to know and for you to find out" position which leaves me with none at all. Well, I still do. But then a paradigm shift towards agape helped me to see that loving someone doesn't mean that you have to know everything about that person, no matter how strong sometimes the yearning might be. The needing want to know may just be a selfish intention to obtain that satisfaction of knowing. Sometimes certain knowledge doesn't necessarily benefit the beloved.
At this point I think it's important to state that this love is not intended to be anything more than pure friendship, and the love that God is teaching me to love with through His own love for me.
Love is practical as well as sacrificial. It may cause inconvenience and challenges one's comfort zone. Though it is not based on the emotions, but if you're interested to let any relationship develop, it is essential to let your beloved feel and know that they are loved, by their language of love. You know there's "The Five Love Languages" coined out by Dr Gary Chapman:
1. Words of Affirmation
2. Quality Time
3. Receiving Gifts
4. Acts of Service
5. Personal Touch
Recently I did a simple (unofficial) quiz on this. Looking back, I kinda doubt its accuracy. Maybe it just reflects that moment of need. Perhaps, perhaps, perhaps...
By the way, there's also "The Five Languages of Apology" - how most sincere an apology is deemed:
1. Expressing Regret
2. Accept Responsibility
3. Make Restitution
4. Genuinely Repent
5. Request Forgiveness
People have their rights to conceal their personal data and I intend to respect their choice of revelation, rather than insist against their preference to resist, for whatever reasons. On the other hand, then, others certainly would have their rights to reveal more, regardless of the propriety. People differ in their understanding of the measure of proper behaviour and their comfort level. Nobody has the true standard to social norms and thus perhaps we should learn not to roll our eyes over varying choice of confirmity and love languages.
Perhaps, we can obtain the true standard from Galatians 5:22-26 on, not so much the method, but the kind of outcome from which our words, thoughts and deeds should reap in us:
"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other."
Was surfing a few blogs when I came across one with those personal surveys. Reminded me of a conversation I had with someone recently which goes something like this.
muso: i still can't get over the fact that you're going to do this.
someone: that shows how little you know about me.
muso: well, you don't make it easy.
someone: of course.
Well, for people (in general) who are not so ready to be understood, they'll probably ignore such a survey even when tagged. Possible reasons: there are better things to do, too personal, too trivia, too lame, or simply, "what for?". Or it depends on who tagged them. I'm just guessing.
What I can say for myself is that by God's grace and His own daily assured love for me, I've yet to give up. But I'm learning that it's more realistic to stop wondering why it's so difficult. I used to feel hurt that the person I want to know more about has the "it's for me to know and for you to find out" position which leaves me with none at all. Well, I still do. But then a paradigm shift towards agape helped me to see that loving someone doesn't mean that you have to know everything about that person, no matter how strong sometimes the yearning might be. The needing want to know may just be a selfish intention to obtain that satisfaction of knowing. Sometimes certain knowledge doesn't necessarily benefit the beloved.
At this point I think it's important to state that this love is not intended to be anything more than pure friendship, and the love that God is teaching me to love with through His own love for me.
Love is practical as well as sacrificial. It may cause inconvenience and challenges one's comfort zone. Though it is not based on the emotions, but if you're interested to let any relationship develop, it is essential to let your beloved feel and know that they are loved, by their language of love. You know there's "The Five Love Languages" coined out by Dr Gary Chapman:
1. Words of Affirmation
2. Quality Time
3. Receiving Gifts
4. Acts of Service
5. Personal Touch
Recently I did a simple (unofficial) quiz on this. Looking back, I kinda doubt its accuracy. Maybe it just reflects that moment of need. Perhaps, perhaps, perhaps...
By the way, there's also "The Five Languages of Apology" - how most sincere an apology is deemed:
1. Expressing Regret
2. Accept Responsibility
3. Make Restitution
4. Genuinely Repent
5. Request Forgiveness
People have their rights to conceal their personal data and I intend to respect their choice of revelation, rather than insist against their preference to resist, for whatever reasons. On the other hand, then, others certainly would have their rights to reveal more, regardless of the propriety. People differ in their understanding of the measure of proper behaviour and their comfort level. Nobody has the true standard to social norms and thus perhaps we should learn not to roll our eyes over varying choice of confirmity and love languages.
Perhaps, we can obtain the true standard from Galatians 5:22-26 on, not so much the method, but the kind of outcome from which our words, thoughts and deeds should reap in us:
"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other."
Comments