Thursday, December 19, 2013

Is It Lack of Love or Lack of Friendship?



photo courtesy of google.com



I read this quote from a philosopher that said,  


“It is not a lack of love, 
but a lack of friendship 
that makes unhappy marriages.” 


Is that true? Well, i can not answer that question from a marriage perspective because I'm not yet married nor have been married before but i know that the Bible can answer that question.


In Ephesians 5:25 (New Century Version), its says there,


Husbands, love your wives 
as Christ loved the church 
and gave himself for it.


We can also read in Ephesians 5:33, J.B.Phillips New Testament Translation:


Men ought to give their wives the love 
they naturally have for their own bodies. 
The love a man gives his wife is the extending of his love 
for himself to enfold her. 
Nobody ever hates or neglects his own body; 
he feeds and looks after it. 
And that is what Christ does for his body, 
the Church. 
And we are all members of that body, 
we are his flesh and blood! 
‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother 
and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’. 
The marriage relationship is doubtless
 a great mystery, but I am speaking of something deeper still—
the marriage of Christ and his Church. 
In practice what I have said amounts to this: 
let every one of you who is a husband love his wife 
as he loves himself;
 let the wife reverence her husband.


It also says in 1 Corinthians 13:13 that, "And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love."


Love is the greatest. It surpasses faith and hope and how much more friendship. So if love is the greatest, love should be the main ingredient or the main reason why one is married. Love should be the reason why you want to marry and why you want to be with that person the rest of your life. Friendship is just a fruit of that love.


Love was also written first as the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22, among others.


But what is love?


1 Corinthians 13:4-8 (New International Version) define love this way:


  Love is patient, love is kind. 
It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking,
 it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 
Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.
 It always protects, always trusts,
 always hopes, 
always perseveres.
Love never fails.


New Century version says,


Love is patient and kind. 
Love is not jealous, it does not brag, and it is not proud.  
Love is not rude, is not selfish, and does not get upset with others. 
Love does not count up wrongs that have been done.
Love takes no pleasure in evil but rejoices over the truth. 
Love patiently accepts all things. 
It always trusts, always hopes, and always endures.
Love never ends


I love how J.B Phillips New Testament Translates it,


 This love of which I speak is slow to lose patience—
it looks for a way of being constructive. 
It is not possessive: 
it is neither anxious to impress 
nor does it cherish inflated ideas of its own importance.
Love has good manners 
and does not pursue selfish advantage. 
It is not touchy. 
It does not keep account of evil 
or gloat over the wickedness of other people. 
On the contrary,
 it is glad with all good men when truth prevails.
Love knows no limit to its endurance, 
no end to its trust, 
no fading of its hope;
 it can outlast anything.
 It is, in fact, the one thing that still stands 
when all else has fallen.
(emphasis mine)


I love that, "Love knows no limit to its endurance, no end to its trust, no fading of its hope; it can outlast anything. It is, in fact, the one thing that still stands when all else has fallen.


And from those passages, love is an action word. If its action and you get tired of loving, then you need to go to the source of love everyday to refresh that love for your wife or husband. God is the source of love and i believe that if the husband and wife have their personal relationship with the source of love...the lover of our soul..the Lord Jesus Christ, they wont fall out of love and won't look for someone else to love because that love for his/her spouse will just be renewed everyday as they spend time to the Lord- the giver, the source and the author of LOVE. 


May you love your spouse until Jesus comes. Enjoy your marriage!



Copyright © 2013  by Mari Ann Rose "Mariah" F. Gadapan . All rights reserved worldwide.
(I put "copyright" on my every post because this is my blog site, it's like my signature on my every post.)
By the grace of God I am what I am


Thursday, February 14, 2013

Love Is...



courtesy of google.com



1 Corinthians 13:4-8

(New Living Translation)


 Love is patient and kind.

Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. 

It does not demand its own way. 

It is not irritable, 

and it keeps no record of being wronged.

 It does not rejoice about injustice 

but rejoices whenever the truth wins out.

Love never gives up, 

never loses faith, 

is always hopeful, 

and endures through every circumstance.

 Prophecy and speaking in unknown languages 

and special knowledge will become useless. 

But love will last forever!



Copyright © 2013  by Mari Ann Rose "Mariah" F. Gadapan . All rights reserved worldwide.
(I put "copyright" on my every post because this is my blog site, it's like my signature on my every post.)
By the grace of God I am what I am.

Friday, November 2, 2012

From Womb To Tomb....



courtesy of google.com



Motherhood is from womb to tomb...

(a quote from a former beauty queen)


Copyright © 2012 by Mari Ann Rose "Mariah" F. Gadapan . All rights reserved worldwide. 
I put "copyright" on my every post because this is my blog site, it's like my signature on my every post. 
By the grace of God I am what I am




Monday, August 20, 2012

A Painter Meets Mr. Painter




Mrs Painter's  Love Inspired Painting



I love love stories. I love the word LOVE.  

 
I love these verses regarding love...Love endures long and is patient and kind; love never is envious nor boils over with jealousy, is not boastful or vainglorious, does not display itself haughtily. It is not conceited (arrogant and inflated with pride); it is not rude (unmannerly) and does not act unbecomingly. Love (God’s love in us) does not insist on its own rights or its own way, for it is not self-seeking; it is not touchy or fretful or resentful; it takes no account of the evil done to it [it pays no attention to a suffered wrong]. Love bears up under anything and everything that comes, is ever ready to believe the best of every person, its hopes are fadeless under all circumstances, and it endures everything [without weakening]. Love never fails [never fades out or becomes obsolete or comes to an end]. As for prophecy ( the gift of interpreting the divine will and purpose), it will be fulfilled and pass away; as for tongues, they will be destroyed and cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away [it will lose its value and be superseded by truth].And so faith, hope, love abide [faith—conviction and belief respecting man’s relation to God and divine things; hope—joyful and confident expectation of eternal salvation; love—true affection for God and man, growing out of God’s love for and in us], these three; but the greatest of these is love.- I Corinthians 13:4-13 Amplified Version.





Love is not blind, it sees more not less but because it sees more, it is willing to see less...and this is one of my favorite love quotes since i was in elementary. I read it from a christian book during my early christian life.


Now, talking about love and love stories, let me share this wonderful love story that  i really like. I happened to interview a co-blogger and a friend who found her love. She's a blogger and an artist at the same time. She paints so i call this love story as, A Painter Meets Mr. Painter (the last name of her found lover, whose last name become now hers). 


Mrs Painter's other Love Inspired Painting


Here's my interview with Mrs Theresa Flores-Painter.....




Wedding Dreams And Reality:
 
 What was your dream wedding?


 Theresa Flores Painter:

My dream wedding had always been a simple one, very intimate and private, only 50 very carefully and picked out guests composed of family and long time friends but memorable and elegant. And that's what Russell gave me.





Wedding Dreams And Reality:
  
Have it ever occured in your mind that you will not be able to get married 
and stay single forever? If so, how did you overcome it?


 Theresa Flores Painter:

Yes it had. I dreamed of getting married someday but I feared getting involved again  because I've been hurt before. It took a lot of prayers and a great amount of understanding from my husband who was then my boyfriend and best friend. I was single by choice. I wouldn't let anyone in until I was certain this was the one. I have so much love to give and I'd only give it to someone I'd fully trust and he has to prove his worth.





Wedding Dreams And Reality:
   
How did you meet each other?


 Theresa Flores Painter:

We met 12 years ago on the net. Our love story is one for the record.


Wedding Dreams And Reality:

How long did you wait for him to meet you in person?


 Theresa Flores Painter:


Three years ago, he asked permission to visit but I didn't let him. I knew if we got together he could fall for me as he already expressed interest then but I was still hurting from my previous broken relationship. I thought it wouldn't be fair to him if I would let him come and I was only half-hearted about the visit. Even though I thought I wasn't in love with him then yet, I cared for him very much and was very careful not to hurt him because I know how it felt to be rejected and hurt by someone you love.

We continued to be friends despite that. I still cared for him, he still cared for me and our friendship continued to grow, Finally sometime in August 2011, he tried to get my permission to let him visit and this time I said yes .




Wedding Dreams And Reality:

How long were you engaged before you got married?


Theresa Flores Painter:
 
We got engaged Feb. 23, 2012 and got married August 3, 2012. 5 months and 11 days

Wedding Dreams And Reality:

 How did he propose marriage to you?


Theresa Flores Painter:   

Russell knows me too well to know how to do it in a way I might prefer it to be done. I won't go into details but it was very private and quiet which was what I liked.And after I said yes, we went to talk to my parents and asked their blessing.






Wedding Dreams And Reality:

 How did you know that he is the one?




Theresa Flores Painter:  

 You just know.


Wedding Dreams And Reality:

 Can you tell more about Mr Painter (His civil status before you met him)?


Theresa Flores Painter:  
 
Russell was married when I met him. He introduced me to his wife who was also handicapped and it was her that I was initially close to. She died in 2006 and our loss ( he lost a wife and I lost a very good, close friend) both affected us so much and found comfort in each other as we both have good memories of her.


Mr. Painter and his son from his late wife


Russell is into woodwork. He makes bowls and pens and candlesticks out of different wood materials as a hobby. He is also a motorcyclist and used to be a very active member of "Christian Motorcyclists Association" (CMA) in Australia. He's still a member but he lives here now.


Wedding Dreams And Reality:

How did you prepare for your wedding?




Theresa Flores Painter:  
 
With a lot of prayers and help from friends.

 


 Wedding Dreams And Reality: 


You are a blessed woman, i can say. What can you tell single people who want to get married yet still single and already reached their late 30's or 40's? What encouragement can you give to those who are physically challenged who want to settle down?






 Theresa Flores Painter:   

If it's God's will, it'll happen. Just pray, trust God and Choose wisely. Don't rush! Wait for the right person.





 To the physically challenged, don't lose hope. We have as much right and chance as everybody else. The challenge is to find someone exceptional who can see past the physical defects and love you for the person you've become.





 Thank you for giving me the chance to share my story with you. God bless!


****

Thank you, Thess for sharing your wonderful love story.
 God bless you and your husband, too! 
Keep on loving God...keep on loving each other and stay happy!
  
*******
 NOTE: photos courtesy of Mrs Thess Flores Painter. You can also visit her blogs here:




Copyright © 2012 by Mari Ann Rose "Mariah" F. Gadapan . All rights reserved worldwide. 
I put "copyright" on my every post because this is my blog site, it's like my signature on my every post. 
By the grace of God I am what I am


Saturday, June 23, 2012

Women...We Are Not A Taste Test!

  
 
 " as a woman, you are are not a taste test either. No man should be able to sample you and then decide if he wants to pay the cost associated with claiming you as his own. Neither should he have the freedom to sample and discard you in pursuit of something that he thinks might taste better or have a lower price. You are priceless- fearfully and wonderfully made. God shaped and molded you in his own image. You were created, redeemed and deeply loved and valued by God. Therefore, the man who wants to be involved with you should have to count the cost. Understand your worth and know your value. Realize that your value does not decrease if you are alone. Your value increases according to your depth of character. Having a man is not what gives you value. Your value is established and stated by God before the beginning of time."
 
-from the book, What Women Dont Know (and Men Don't Tell You)
 
Copyright © 2012 by Mari Ann Rose "Mariah" F. Gadapan . All rights reserved worldwide.
I put "copyright" on my every post because this is my blog site, it's like my signature on my every post. 

 By the grace of God I am what I am.


Saturday, May 12, 2012

Something To Ponder On

 
courtesy: Google.com 
 
 Just a thought to ponder on  and i believe there's truth in this:
 
"Never marry a man who hates his mother, 
because he'll end up hating you."
- Jill Bennett



Copyright © 2011 by Mari Ann Rose "Mariah" F. Gadapan . All rights reserved worldwide.
I put "copyright" on my every post because this is my blog site, it's like my signature on my every post. 
 By the grace of God I am what I am. 
 

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Unfailing Love


always remember, God's love is unfailing...


courtesy: youtube.com



Copyright © 2012 by Mari Ann Rose "Mariah" F. Gadapan . All rights reserved worldwide. 
I put "copyright" on my every post because this is my blog site, it's like my signature on my every post. 
By the grace of God I am what I am.

Friday, April 6, 2012

No Greater Love


photo courtesy: google.com


Today, as we celebrate the Lenten season, let's be reminded of the sacrificial love God has for us. There is no greater love than His.


No one has greater love [no one has shown stronger affection]
 than to lay down (give up) his own life for his friends.
 -John 15:13 Amplified Version


Take time to spend time with Him and let your heart be open to the love that He is offering and giving you. He loves you so much and his love is greater...greater than your lover's love...greater than your dreams...greater than your past...greater than your present...greater than your future...greater than anything else.



Copyright © 2012 by Mari Ann Rose "Mariah" F. Gadapan . All rights reserved worldwide. 
I put "copyright" on my every post because this is my blog site, it's like my signature on my every post. 
By the grace of God I am what I am.


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