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The Loveletter Staff
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Founder / Editor in Chief Laconia
Dunn
Senior Editor
Sammie Love
Technical Analyst
Katinya Lilly
Contributing Writers
Katinya Lilly
Tenesa Thompson
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IN THIS ISSUE:
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From the Heart
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Let's Talk about Love
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What is your Heart Telling You
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And God Said
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Editor's Notes
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I hopped out of bed and
slipped into the bathroom. I started the water in the shower and
quickly got in. It felt so nice. I cleaned every part of me. I was
done. I stepped out of the shower and began my daily rituals. I
started thoroughly cleaning and washing my face, I brushed and
flossed my teeth. Then I applied a minimal amount of makeup. I
let my hair down and began to brush the mid-length tresses. I slipped
into my clothes for the day and was out the door.
I slid into my cute ‘lil car, dropping my briefcase and purse in their
respective places. I was ready to go. Suddenly, I felt a pair of eyes staring at
me. It was my husband standing at the front of the car. He said,
"You forgot to kiss me." I said, "You came out here
for that?" He said, "That’s the most important part of my
day; when we say goodbye and go our ways joyfully, it makes my day
flow happily." I said, "Ok."
and I reached up and kissed his handsome face. I was off!
As I started
the car and backed out of the driveway, I thought about what had just
happened. I was arrested in my thoughts.
As I thought about how important
something so small was to my spouse, I began to feel guilty, but
happy that he felt that way. My mind began to flow on a spiritual
course and I thought how something so small could be as equally
important to my heavenly Father. I asked the Holy Spirit quietly,
"Do I forget o kiss you?" In the spirit, I could feel a
sense of affirmation. Oh my goodness, in my haste and rushing each
day, could I often forget to kiss the sweet Holy Spirit of God? Could
you?
Search your
heart. Remember your actions: your daily rituals. How often are you
paying attention to God? Do you spend devotion or quiet time with
Him? Maybe you simply acknowledge Him by a soft, "good morning
Holy Spirit." What ever your normal routine is, don’t forget to
kiss Him. By that I mean acknowledge Him, spend an intimate moment
with Him. That’s all my husband was saying. He simply wanted to spend
an intimate moment with me before he started his day so he could have
a reason for the day. T hat’s all God wants too....He wants to be the
center of your thoughts and actions. Begin slowly giving it to Him
and watch how His face lights up. Then watch how your day begins to
blossom! For, from His heart shall flow love derived from the
sweetness of life!
Until the next
time,
Laconia Dunn-Master Servant
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Are you in love
or lust?
To answer this
question you must first know the definitions of the words. Love and
lust are very complex words with simple meanings. Merriam-Webster
defines love as "a strong affection for another arising out of
kinship or personal ties." In the same sense lust is defined as
"a pleasure, delight, or personal inclination." These
definitions are given to make a very important point: God "loves"
us, He does not "lust" us, so why do we lust each other? I
John 4:11 says, "Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love
on another."
Our youth today have the exact same problem we had years ago and it
doesn’t seem to be changing in the 21st century. The two words get us
in trouble because many of us think we are love and it is actually
lust. Many youth talk about love as if it is no big deal when actually
it is a very big deal. This is the first thing God did for us; gave His
son as an act of love to wipe away our sins. So lust has no place in
love. We've all heard this line, "baby you know I love
you." Then the next line is, "Mom, dad, I’m pregnant’, or
"Mom, dad, my girl is pregnant." Our youth constantly fall
for the "okie-doke" because they do not love themselves.
Since they do not love themselves, they are okay with lusting someone
else. We must teach our youth to have one-on-one relationships with
God. He is the ultimate teacher of love. In order for them to learn
about love they must spend time in His word through bible study at home
and in church. Giving them a true perspective of what love is through
God’s eyes is the only way to stop the confusion of love and
lust.
The # 1 Hot 100 Billboard song right now is
"Promiscuous". We all know the meaning of this word. It
implies to our children that it is okay for 
them to be this way. I
feel that the #1 Hot Billboard song should be "Pure", by a
young artist named Kari Jobe from Gateway Church in Grapevine, Texas.
In the song she tells us that God’s love is pure. She explains that His
love is everything and all that we need. She says that she clings to
Him when she is weak. This is the kind of love we need to assist us in
loving ourselves. When we love ourselves, there is no need or desire to
lust others.
By Katinya Lilly
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I am a young
Christian man. Like most men of today, I desire to be married, just not
right now. I know I shouldn’t continue going from relationship to
relationship, but that’s hard to avoid. Plus, there are so many women
out there it is hard to choose. They are so willing to get into bed;
that sex is only an issue because Christ forbids it outside of
marriage. Besides this fact, it is fairly
easy; however, that’s my
problem. Not only do I have a problem settling down, I also find it
hard to be in a relationship if sex is not involved. How can anyone be
in a relationship and not have sex? How can you say you care for
someone and not be intimate with them? I hear people talk about this
all the time, but I look at them like they are crazy. Surely they don’t
believe that you can be with the opposite sex for a long period of time
and nothing happen. If so, how long does the relationship last? Am I
the only one feeling this way, am I alone in my thoughts and views? Is
there something wrong with me? Does this nullify my beliefs and
Christianity?
Signed,
"Mr. Unsure"
Dear "Mr. Unsure",
First of all let
me thank you for your honesty. I’m sure you’re not the only one out
there that feels this way; however, you are one of the few brave enough
to express what you are going through openly.
As a young Christian, whether male or female, relationships and/or
dating is hard. Why, you ask? Because if we’re
honest, dating presents situations that we aren’t mature enough to
handle. We place ourselves in situations that we are not strong enough
to resist. Things such as visiting the opposite sex’s home after dark,
going to movies in the dark, holding hands, rubbing body parts, sharing
deep stares or thinking thoughts that take us places we know we
shouldn’t go. Then there is laying the head in each other’s laps,
giving little massages and nice little pecks on the lips, all arousing
the libido. As small and harmless as these actions may seem, they all
jeopardize our walk with Christ.
You say "That’s life." and you’re right; however, the problem
is, if you are dating, you will find yourself in that situation time
and time again, going from person to person. Not only will your witness
be on display because others are watching you, but your commitment
becomes compromised. Understand too, that relationships can function
very well without sex as an additive. The duration depends on you. It
depends on your commitment and how willing you are to make it happen.
Often times we try to be committed to too many things without being
committed to the right things.
As a man, sex is usually number one when it comes to desires, but as
you pointed out, it is unacceptable to God outside the confines of
marriage. Maintaining this mindset may not nullify what you believe or
it may not negate your Christianity; however, it does question your
integrity, sincerity and commitment to Christ. How serious are you
about why you believe what you believe? How willing are you to work to
satisfy Him and not them? How bad do you want Christ to honor your
petitions made to him? Are you honoring His requests of you? How much
are you willing to sacrifice or give up in order to
experience the totality of what Christ has in store for you?
Think about it, try it, and watch it. For it shall change the way you
think, act and eventually, look.
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What is Your Heart Telling You?
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INTIMACY--the
word "intimacy" stems from the Latin word intimatus--to make
something known to someone. The word originally meant "to notify,
it did not start with a meaning of emotional closeness. The first great
commandment: The Lord our God is one; and thou shalt love the Lord thy
God with all thine heart, and with all thine
mind, and with all 
thine strength (KJV Mark 12:29-31). There are no
other commandments greater than these. This is love in the purest of
forms and this includes intimacy, but in a different way. In this
culturally sex-craved world we live in, it is not unusual to think of
sex when you hear the word intimacy. In fact you are considered normal
according to society for thinking this way. However, coming into the
"True Knowledge of God" and developing a personal
relationship with Him is an awakening my friends! It’s
called being "Reborn". It is a renewing of your mind, a
different way of thinking.
Think about the word intimacy for a moment
INTIMACY-(in-to-me-see)=into God. Once you’re
broken before the Lord and cry out to Him with a desire to change, He
alone will give you peace that surpasses all understanding and intimacy
that no other can give. "Sex" is the physical act between man
and woman that bonds two souls together. It has been allowed for the
sanction of marriage, never having been meant to be casual: however,
premarital sex is so commonplace that intimacy is traded for
immorality. Once a man enters your body through casual sex, he obtains
a piece of your soul and you have a piece of his. This is why we get onto
emotional roller coasters with individuals and find it hard to commit.
These acts are examples of instant gratifications, but better known as
"fornication" and God didn’t sanctify these actions. Did you
not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit which is in
you (KJV I Cor 6:19)? Your reasonable service is to present your bodies
as a living sacrifice for God’s use, not your
boyfriend/girlfriend’s.
Apply God’s principles to your life and experience true intimacy that
Jesus gives us all. He already provided a road map (the bible) even
though the road is narrow and
seldom traveled; God’s
natural light will guide. Just have faith and believe. He will steer
you to Mr. or Mrs. Right so true intimacy can be experienced. Listen to
what your heart is telling you. Seek ye first the kingdom of heaven and
all His righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you (KJV
Matthew 6:31-34).
by Tenesa Thompson
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A Good Thing
Let’s talk
about dating, being single, finding new love and companionship.
Everyone wants to be loved, feel needed, or be the "apple"
of someone else’s eye, but to what extent do you go to fulfill your
desires to be in a relationship? Proverbs 18:22 says, "Whoso
findeth a wife findeth a good thing, and obtaineth
favour of the Lord." This scripture
means that it is the man that should be seeking the woman and she is
supposed to be found. In the boldness of our society today, we tend
to get this backwards.
So let’s say you want to be in a relationship, are you really ready?
You say, "What’s to get ready for, the man is the head and is
supposed to supply all my needs." That may be true; however, do
you not have an obligation to prepare yourself to be found? Every
female, when she gets ready to go on a date, prepares herself for
that date. You shower, shave legs, put on make-up and carefully
orchestrate your outfit to get a reaction from the man that is
nothing short of mind-blowing. So why do we not think that to be
found by a man, we don’t need to be prepared? It is often said that
while you are in your singleness, this is the time to be getting
closer to God and preparing yourself for who He has for you. So what
does it take to prepare yourself? Glad you
asked. First of all just like we desire a man that is financially
set, we ourselves should be in the same position or at least have a
plan developed to get there. This eliminates awkward situations and
debt-burdened relationships. Second, you’ve heard the phrase"
the same thing it took to get her, will be the same thing needed to
keep her...this is not only true for the male, we as females do
special things to get the attention of a man and we, too, have been
found guilty of not maintaining the person that caught his eye.
Finally, a well-maintained relationship is one that is cultivated,
nourished and cherished daily. The coin has to be even on both sides.
And if you expect your mate to possess certain things, then you
should posses them as well;
after all, we attract who we are.
Believing in you, trusting in Him....
Sammie Love-Editor
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