Lookin’ for Love in All the Wrong Places

Some of you (if you are as old as me) when you hear those words automatically think of the 1980 movie “Urban Cowboy” starring John Travolta. The song “Lookin’ for Love” was the mantra of the day, especially in the Country Music scene. The days of crying in my beer over that cheating woman were fading out and being birthed was a desire for a relationship that had some depth and meaning.

What I often find amazing is the spiritual parallel that takes place in a society. What do I mean? Well the Urban Cowboy idea was also happening in the church; Christians were looking for Love (God) in all the wrong places. They were looking for the easy pick-up God and it wasn’t satisfying their needs and it felt as if something was still missing. The scriptures tell us that God is Love; 1 John 4:16 “We know how much God loves us, and we have put our trust in His love. God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them.” Some would say “I thought that God was found in the church”, well, by some yes and by others no. God is not found in an external place, religion has tried that one for years, God is found one step outside our comfort zone (we call that faith).

People in general want something for nothing and are not willing to pay the price for something better. An easy pick-up relationship is a cheap relationship that usually won’t last because it is self centered and based on what I can get. A true relationship has a price tag and that price is your self and is based on what I can give. The giving I am speaking of is the willingness to sacrifice your fears and insecurities for the benefit of the other.

The apostle Peter discovered this when he saw Jesus (Love) walking on the water. Peter stepped out of that boat beyond his fears and started to walk on the water in faith to connect with Love in the right place. That step was a step that was outside of his control, he had put his life in Gods’ hands, he chose to trust in what he could not understand and he found himself getting closer to Love. “Well didn’t he start to sink into the water?” Yes he started sinking when he got his eyes off of Jesus and onto himself and his own problems, but even then when he cried out for help, Love was there to pick him up.

I didn’t say that it wasn’t risky; Love is always risky to our way of thinking, fears rise up, thoughts of inadequacy rise up, but remember that those are just the waves on the sea and just like Peter if we call out, then He will take our hand and help us to walk on the water and discover True Love.