Seniors have learned...
Love is Communication!

When February comes each year, we begin to think about Love! Valentines are everywhere we look. We remember the songs from our youth like “What the world needs now is love sweet love” along with many others. We begin to think about the real meaning of love; what we have learned through the years in both the good and the bad times.  Of course any understanding of love must first be anchored in a love and life-saving relationship with Jesus Christ and the forgiveness of our sins by His sacrifice on the Cross! But remember when you first fell in love? One senior recalling this told me a good story. He wrote a letter to his future bride. He said, "You know, I remember proposing to you last night.  But I can't remember whether you said yes or no.  Could you help me out?"  She was very smart.  She wrote him a letter and said, "I'm so grateful that you wrote the letter.  I remembered saying no to some proposal for marriage but I forgot who it was." That...was when I discovered perhaps the most important thing about love and marriage...Communication! He said, “We have learned that if you cannot communicate, you won’t experience love and /or stay together!”

 

May I share 5 wonderful things we’ve learned about communication and real love? 5 levels that may be just the thing those behind us need to hear...

 

1. The Frivolous level: It just deals with cliché’s like “It's a beautiful day.  What about sports?”  We talk about all those frivolous things.  
2. The Factual level: Where we're reporting facts.  We talk about facts.  No room for personal involvement.  Almost like a news commentator giving the evening news.
3. The Fellowship level: On this level we talk about ideas, judgments, and philosophies.  At that point we begin to risk a little bit.  Somebody may reject our judgments and philosophies and then we may retreat back.
4. The Feeling level: Not only do we talk about judgments, philosophies and ideas, but we open up and say how we really feel about these facts and judgments.  That's about as far as most people get in communication.
5. The Freedom level: We are just open with our mate.  We share our dreams, fears, ideas, and we're completely free.  There is no fear of rejection. 

 

The word intimacy comes from the Latin word “intimace”.  That means “in most”.  You're dealing with the “in most” part.  Your dreams, your fears, your secrets, your failures, your aspirations; these are things that you would share with no one else on earth except that person that you're intimate with.  That is the secret of lasting love. To be completely known, and still be loved, is the supreme goal of marriage. 

 

God bless you, your Valentine and all the folks who are touched by your love and life!

 

—Joe Schofield

Associate Pastor/ Senior Adults, Prestonwood Baptist Church- Email:  jschofield@prestonwood.org