I Love You, But...

I have a habit, like most people, of checking Facebook once or twice a day. I want to see what my family and friends are doing, thinking, posting. One particular friend was on a rant because another friend told her he didn't care for some of the things she posted. I'd be a little perturbed if someone told me they didn't like what I posted. Then again, sometimes I'd be a little shocked that someone actually read any of my postings. I agreed that the person shouldn't have told her that. Personally, I think that's what the delete button is for. Get enough of it, delete the person. Or at least remove the person from your daily feed.
  But my friend said something else. What she said was , if you don't love all of me then delete me. 
    Well, let's think about that for a moment.Can you love every single aspect of a person, as in every part of their life? Can you love the person and not like parts of their lives?
  A popular statement these days just happens to be, if you love me you have to accept all of me. God loves us in the truest form, and He doesn't even do that. He tells us in His Word there are things He cannot and will not abide: lying, adultery, fornication, homosexuality, murder to name a few. Every single person who lives, ever has lived, and ever will live on this earth has sinned or will sin. Does this mean God hates us? Not at all! God loves us, and hates the sin!
  Example two: I love my sister, but she smokes. I don't like that part of her life. If she were to come visit, the cigarettes have to stay outside. The smell makes me ill and I don't want that nasty stuff in my house. Does this mean I don't love my sister or that I love her any less? No way!
  Love isn't and shouldn't be conditional. I don't know anyone who would ever say "I will love you if...". You either love someone or you don't. Conditional love is wrong, on both sides of the street. Telling someone that they have to accept a behavior or activity or they don't love you is just as wrong. Both types of behavior should have been outgrown at least by junior high.
  Bottom line? Facebook, at the end of the day, is really not much more than a virtual "I Love Me" wall. You post on there things that are important to you, that mean something to you. You're sharing yourself in a way that is safe because for the most part, you control who sees "you."  That's the easy part. What you cannot and should not even try to control is how someone feels when they see what you post. Some will like it, others won't. Some will hit the delete button and move on, some will give feedback. Those we have on our friends list are there for a reason. While sometimes it is our first instinct to get angry and defensive when someone disagrees, perhaps we should just go ahead and talk with the person. Learn something. Gain a new perspective. Or just shrug and agree to disagree on that point. 
    Love one another as we are commanded. Jesus is our greatest example of how to love. He loved the people. He didn't love what they did.

I have a habit, like most people, of checking Facebook once or twice a day. I want to see what my family and friends are doing, thinking, posting. One particular friend was on a rant because another friend told her he didn't care for some of the things she posted. I'd be a little perturbed if someone told me they didn't like what I posted. Then again, sometimes I'd be a little shocked that someone actually read any of my postings. I agreed that the person shouldn't have told her that. Personally, I think that's what the delete button is for. Get enough of it, delete the person. Or at least remove the person from your daily feed.
  But my friend said something else. What she said was , if you don't love all of me then delete me. 
    Well, let's think about that for a moment.Can you love every single aspect of a person, as in every part of their life? Can you love the person and not like parts of their lives?
  A popular statement these days just happens to be, if you love me you have to accept all of me. God loves us in the truest form, and He doesn't even do that. He tells us in His Word there are things He cannot and will not abide: lying, adultery, fornication, homosexuality, murder to name a few. Every single person who lives, ever has lived, and ever will live on this earth has sinned or will sin. Does this mean God hates us? Not at all! God loves us, and hates the sin!
  Example two: I love my sister, but she smokes. I don't like that part of her life. If she were to come visit, the cigarettes have to stay outside. The smell makes me ill and I don't want that nasty stuff in my house. Does this mean I don't love my sister or that I love her any less? No way!
  Love isn't and shouldn't be conditional. I don't know anyone who would ever say "I will love you if...". You either love someone or you don't. Conditional love is wrong, on both sides of the street. Telling someone that they have to accept a behavior or activity or they don't love you is just as wrong. Both types of behavior should have been outgrown at least by junior high.
  Bottom line? Facebook, at the end of the day, is really not much more than a virtual "I Love Me" wall. You post on there things that are important to you, that mean something to you. You're sharing yourself in a way that is safe because for the most part, you control who sees "you."  That's the easy part. What you cannot and should not even try to control is how someone feels when they see what you post. Some will like it, others won't. Some will hit the delete button and move on, some will give feedback. Those we have on our friends list are there for a reason. While sometimes it is our first instinct to get angry and defensive when someone disagrees, perhaps we should just go ahead and talk with the person. Learn something. Gain a new perspective. Or just shrug and agree to disagree on that point. 
    Love one another as we are commanded. Jesus is our greatest example of how to love. He loved the people. He didn't love what they did.