True Love is....

In addition to love being kind and patient and several qualities listed in the Bible, it is also forgiving, other-Centered,, serving and sacrificial, eternal faithful and obedient and principled.

In order for true love to benefit another person, it has to be unconditional. This means that love is based on the person's worth as a human being. 

No matter what a person's status or appearance, unconditional love respects and recognizes the worth of the other person simply because he was created by God.

True love can transcend national boundaries or racial boundaries and discrimination between religious sects. In this unity, we are all brothers and sisters. In the sight of God, there is no such thing as Orientals, Whites, and Blacks . . . we are different only on the surface. Underneath, we come from the same God.

Reverend Sun Myung Moon's comment on unconditional true love:

A second aspect of true love's unconditional nature is that it is given to the worthy and unworthy alike. The Bible states that God's sun shins upon both the good and evil people. Of course, it is easier for us to love those who are lovable, but unconditional love asks us to love those who are unlovable in the moment just because they were conceived in the perfect love of God. In addition, we should love others because they are destined to return to God's bosom.

The day will come when they are restored and revealed as an indispensable part of God: His precious and beloved children.

Unconditional love does not meant to overlook and accept bad conduct, but to give with the hope of redeeming the other and calling him back to live in God's true way.

Once people feel accepted and love, they are far more likely to confess, repent and make the necessary effofrts to change.

The founder of Boys Town, Father Flanagan, had a philosophy that, “There is no such thing as a bad boy.” He believed that beneath the rough, tough, dirty exterior of the worst street urchin, God's child awaited to be allowed to thus come out in safety in order to be loved. 

This kind of unconditional love 'broke down' many many incorrigible boys and cleansed them with healing tears and inspired many to live amended lives.

To this day, Boys Town remains the most successful child rehabilitation system in the world.

Many of its alumni who were once abused and neglect, go on to live a productive and valuable life just because one man had a vision to love without any condition.

True Love Is Eternal

Reverend Sun Myung Moon commented on the quality of true love:

People like gold because it doesn’t change . . . . What element in diamonds makes people love them? As far as its hardness and solidity is concerned, the diamond excels any other stone. Other rocks and metals will be eroded as time goes by, but diamonds won’t . . . . The more valuable something is, the less changeable it is.

True love does not waver – it is eternal. It does not change based on a whim, circumstance or outo f convenience.

A good friend will stay at his pal's side through the good and also the bad times. A devoted husband stays with his wife in her beautiful youth and as her beauty fades. A parent who is deserted by his child will still look out he window every night hoping for his rebellious son's return.

Constancy is the ballast of all lasting and true relationships.

People who truly practice unconditional love, they are there for one another in times of pleasure as well as time of pain.

Also, God's unchanging love is a place where the heart can return again and again for forgiveness, renewal, reassurance, wisdom and a fresh determination.

There was a bumper sticker that read, “If you don't feel close to God – guess who moved?” We are assured that it wasn't God that moved.

One parent won the heart of her teenage daughter through her unending determination. The teenager became rebellious and increasingly 'smart-mouthed' and rebellious which caused the parent pain.

Everything came to a crisis point when the police department called her and said they had her daughter. The mother was understandingly furious and didn't speak to her daughter all night. 

Then she thought again how she believed in her daughter's essential goodness. So, to demonstrate her faith in her daughter, the mother wrapped a small gift box and gave it to her daughter.

The daughter unwrapped it and found a rock inside with a note that read:

This rock is a thousand years old. That's how long it will take before I give up on you.

Right then, the teenager broke down in extreme tears when she witnessed her mother's devotion to her. The two became very close after that incident.

Just as a human mother does not give up on her child, God does not give up on His children either. Even when people give up on themselves. 

They may feel worthless, hopeless, in despair and feel they are beyond redemption just as the teenager girl undoubtedly felt about herself in the story above.

God's love is like a rock.

God is always there waiting and hoping for His child's return. Jesus expressed, “Ask and it will be given to you, seek and you will find, knock and the door shall be opened unto you.”

God is a parent who is always home and ready to answer the door. He always hopes that the children He loves so steadfastly come to pay Him a visit. He hopes to be embraced again in the love that never wavers.

“What made Jesus sacred was that he trusted and loved people, wanted to live with them and save them more than anything else—even though they betrayed him. He blessed his enemies.”

Sixty-six volumes in the Holy Scripture can be condensed into a significant meaning – Jesus' main teaching is unchangeability.

True Love Is Unique

The uniqueness of each individual is taken in account in true love. It is not a 'one size fits all' kind of love. Each person needs to be loved exactly for who he or she is. Each one of us is a unique entity in the universe with their own likes and dislikes and preferences.

To love with discernment requires wisdom, attentiveness, and patience.

No two petals on a flower look alike as well as small stones, pebbles on the side of a mountain upon careful examination. This is one of the beauties of nature. Also, in the way you were born. True love's uniqueness is vividly demonstrated through family relationships.

A highly-successful marriage program advises the husband and wife to make an individual list of the kinds of things that make them feel loved. Then the couple share their list with their spouse.

A wife may feel cared for when her husband brings her a cup of tea in the morning. The husband may feel loved when the wife lines up fresh socks in the linen drawer.

Little favors such as these may not seem profound if they are not catered to the person's unique ways.

Siblings are different from each other and need to be encouraged and nurtured in different ways. This compells parents to love their children in unique ways. Children's love needs change as they grow. A nine-year-old who loved being kissed when he was younger will feel that his mother is smothering him when she does it at ten years old.

A way of giving love has turned into an offense and must be adjusted to the uniqueness of the growing individual.

Children’s lives are a veritable education in how to love the unique adults who are their parents.

Even though there are principles of love that work for and apply to everyone, love is tailor-made to each individual in order to make him or her feel uniquely loved.

God shows this kind of understanding toward each of His children. He gently guides us through things that spake most strongly to each of our individual hearts.

God shows his appreciation for our uniqueness by speaking to the person's heart through music, art literature, sports pets and dancing. Whatever a person love, God uses such things to reach out to him or her. In essencece, God is saying, “I know you. I understand you. I love you for who you are.”

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This post was rewritten and derived from the religious textbook, Educating for True Love, Chapter 1 written by a team of writers to explaining Dr. Rev. Sun Myung Moon's thoughts on morality, society and Family.