From WWII to Eternity: A Love Story Echoing Christ’s Everlasting Love

What is your love story? Did you know you have the greatest love story every told? You have the best kind of love there is.

“Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.” 
John 15:13 ESV

Everyone enjoys a good love story. My grandparents’ story is one of my favorites. They met during WWII. He was serving in the navy, a small town-boy from Wyoming. She was working in the U.S. Pentagon, assigned to be a hostess at a military dance. He saw her from across the room and told his friend he found the woman her would marry.  

He convinced her to dance with him, and a few months later they were married. After the war, she followed him to one of the smallest towns in our country, a secluded territory with record-low temperatures. They built a beautiful life together. They were married over 50 years before she passed away. He never loved again and spent the remainder of his years longing to be reunited with his bride.

God created us to love and be loved. As Valentine’s Day approaches, I’m reminded of the array of feelings I’ve experienced on this holiday over the years. They’ve ranged from delight to disappointment but were always rooted in a desire to have my own love story. While I was searching for eros (romantic love), I didn’t understand that the love my heart most longed for had already come.

Agape is a selfless, sacrificial love, intended solely for the benefit of its recipient. It’s the love Jesus Christ displayed for us on the cross. Agape love is unique from other types of love because it never fails, never changes, and never ends.

“In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son the be the propitiation for our sins.” 1 John 4:10 ESV

God’s Perfect Love Story

In truth, our best love stories are never perfect because we are not perfect. We hurt one another. Sometimes we take more than we give. We abandon instead of remain. We justify our actions based on feelings. So, loyalty fluctuates, and betrayal is prevalent.

On the contrary, God’s steadfast love never fails or disappoints. Agape is unconditional- not based on feelings or our righteousness. His love is a choice, and He chooses to love us perfectly.

God is immutable and so is His love for us. Our accomplishments and failures have no impact on His love. There is nothing we can do to make God love us more, or less. This love story has never depended on us.

God’s love is eternal. When all our other loves have ended, His love will remain. He’s with us when we open our eyes each morning, and when we drift into sleep each night. He’s with us when we draw our first breath, when we draw our last, and every moment in-between. No other love promises to dwell with us eternally.

It’s good to desire, know and celebrate eros love. But it’s also important to remember that the love the world celebrates on Valentine’s Day was never meant to fully satisfy us. It is a gift from God, but it is not the perfect Gift.

True love is not something we feel, it’s someone we know.  It’s a person who came into this world because of God’s love for it. (John 3:16) He left his home in heaven to reconcile us to the love of our Father. It’s the person who demonstrated His love for us while we were sinners by laying down his life for us. He modeled agape love in his life and in his death. And He didn’t just do love, He is love. (1 John 4:16)

His nail-pierced hands are the true image of love. And I’ve no doubt those hands will one day wipe away the tears we’ve shed because of imperfect eros love. They  will welcome and embrace us eternally because He chose agape. Truly, there is no greater love than this.

Whatever this holiday brings, sweet sister, I encourage you to remember -if you are a child of God, your greatest love story has already and is currently happening.

In His Word

Meditate on Romans 8:38-39 today. “For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

In Your Life

As Valentine’s Day approaches, are you filled with anticipation and expectation? Or are you dreading this day? How does knowing there is nothing that can separate you from the love of God bring you comfort?

We Recommend

The Promise is His Presence by Glenna Marshall is a great reminder that our God has always been, and will always be, a God who dwells with us. We are never alone when God is our Father.

Shane and Shane’s song – Psalm 90 (Satisfy Us With Your Love) is a beautiful prayer to remind our hearts to seek satisfaction in the love of God.

Let’s Connect

If you’d like to connect with Brenda or read more from her, you can find her at Women of the Way, on Instagram, or on Facebook.