The last time I blogged I proposed that love for an infant is more or less defined by having her needs met.

What are the needs of an infant?  Perhaps every list of needs can be reduced to one:  babies, all of us -- NEED life.  Life is the balance, synthesis, tapestry of several threads that we have named things like physical, emotional, social, etc.  They cannot truly be separated from one another, they all depend on one another, and they all have spiritual foundations, or at least, must become spiritual.

Since we don't possess an eternity of life when we are (first) born into mortality, our life must then be renewed from time to time.  How is life renewed?  We NEED to be FED:  physically, spiritually, socially, intellectually, etc.  Energy and knowledge must enter our system(s) on a constant basis in order for our organism to continue whole and with its original identity.

When someone invests energy in us, enabling us to be renewed, then they have LOVED us.  This is Christ's love.  A baby at his mother's breast is a great manifestation of this pattern.

Sometimes we have to be careful to NOT look to other human beings to love us or fill our needs.  Of course, we are privileged to serve and to love, and we have stewardships with duties to love and serve.  We ought to be able to count on love from other human beings.  But too often humans are imperfect and mortal life is imperfect and we experience a lack of and break down of love from other human beings.  Other mortals may not be able to generate the energy for it. Marriage and family is the highest covenant (actually this starts at the baptismal covenant also) precisely because we are responsible for others' needs and accountable for whether we have met them.

The solution is that we are already loved by our Father in heaven and our Savior.  In some sense there is no more love than that anyway.  Even if we as humans love one another that love is coming from the source of God (I believe), even so far in some instances (maybe all the time) we represent God and His love to others -- we carry that message.  In any case if all the humans around us fail in their love, including our own bodies have no love for ourselves, we can go directly to our Father in heaven.  We can have peace knowing that if there is a lack of love coming from a particular person, the universe hasn't suffered a comparable lack -- your Savior is capable of filling you up whole again.  If a person is loving you it is because they too received it first from the Savior.

One of my favorite hymns, Hymn 166 "Abide With Me!"

Abide with me! fast falls the eventide;  The darkness deepens.  Lord, with me abide!  When other helpers faile and comforts flee, Help of the helpless, oh, abide with me.  Swift to its close ebbs out life's little day.  Earth's joys grow dim; its glories pass away.  Change and decay in all around I see; O thou who changest not, abide with me!  I need thy presence ev'ry passing hour.  What but thy grace can foil the tempter's pow'r?  Who, like thyself, my guide and stay can be?  Thru could and sunshine, Lord, abide with me!

Also Hymn 140 "Jesus, the Very Thought of Thee"

Jesus, the very thought of thee with sweetness fills my breast; but sweeter far thy face to see and in thy presence rest.  Nor voice can sing, nor heart can frame, nor can the mem'ry find a sweeter sound than thy blest name, O Savior of mankind!  O hope of ev'ry contrite heart, O joy of all the meek, to those who fall, how kind thou art!  How good to those who seek!  Jesus, our only joy be thou, as thou our prize wilt be; Jesus, be thou our glory now, and thru eternity.

[I wrote this is 1999. I do not present this writing as a representation of doctrine.  It is my own thoughts, feelings, study and belief -- or at least the condition it was in, in 1999.  I encourage you to not take my word for anything, but to do your own study, pondering, and asking of God.]

Tags: Needs Life Mortality Love

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