"U" is for UTILITARIAN

This is week 21 of the Blogging Through the Alphabet Challenge by Through The Calm and Through the Storm and Adventures With Jude.  The letter is "U" and I chose the word "utilitarian".

• Utilitarian-designed to be useful or practical rather than attractive.

When I blogged the letter "M", I wrote about marriage and how opposite my husband and I are but that our marriage works because of our unity in Christ.  Well another way that Steve and I are opposites is that I really enjoy getting unexpected gifts.  Steve on the other hand doesn't like gifts at all unless I just happen to come upon one that is utilitarian.  He won't let you splurge on him with things that he might just enjoy, the gift has to be useful.  I have spent 26 years trying to figure out the "whys" of that.  It must be something from his childhood.  Perhaps he was really looking forward to a present and was disappointed?  Of course he can't remember anything like that, so I am just left to guess.

I have told him it just takes the "fun" out of giving when I can't surprise him.  And giving socks and underwear is not very exciting.  Every now and then I score by knowing something will be useful and he hasn't actually told me what to get.  A few times that has backfired, like the time I bought a clock that was suppose to recharge his phone and act as an alarm, only to find out his phone was one generation too old for the clock.  Since I ordered it from Ebay I couldn't return it.  

Steve is really hard on slippers, so it is a guarantee that every Christmas he gets a new pair of slippers.  When we first moved to Colorado it was easier because he didn't have much winter wear, so I had several items (hats, gloves, scarf, flannel, etc.) that I could give him :-)

Now unfortunately, I am not much into utilitarian gifts.  So when I got a crockpot and can opener for Christmas I had to be gracious and honestly tried to be thankful as they were things I needed, but I am confessing here, I was less than thrilled.  However, I really have enjoyed the remote control candles :-)

Anyway, this is probably the most boring of all my Through The Alphabet Posts, but it is all I could come up with for the letter "U".

The great thing about Steve is he is very easy to please.  I just have to make sure the item is UTILITARIAN :-)

"T" is for TOMB

This is week 20 of the Blogging Through the Alphabet Challenge by Through The Calm and Through the Storm and Adventures With Jude.  Only 6 more weeks to link up with these posts!  When I first joined I thought it would be fun to try to get back to blogging, by blogging through the alphabet.  I really didn't realize I was joining a homeschool group and that most of their posts would be about homeschooling, but I have found their posts to be full of creativity! They all definitely love their children and are doing their best to provide them with the best education possible!  So applause to all of you!!!

That being said, I have no children, so no school experiences or knowledge to share.  This week our letter is "T" and with Easter being this month, I couldn't think of a better word than TOMB, more exact the empty tomb.

According to Wikipedia there are more than 4,200 religions in the world. But for the purpose of this blog posts let's just  say there are 5 major religions: Christianity, Judiasm, Buddhism, Hinduism and Islam.  What makes Christianity stand out from those is that we claim to have a God who raised from the dead? All other leaders of any other religious movements are still in their graves.  For Christianity the tomb of our leader is empty. There is no current day shrine built there for people to go and worship because there were no bones on which to build a shrine.

I could blog about the reasons I believe in the resurrection, but I would not be able to do it , as well as explained here http://www.desiringgod.org/articles/historical-evidence-for-the-resurrection, so I will let you read that yourself, if you like.  But I will tell you the two most compelling reasons I believe in the resurrection of Jesus:

• Jesus appeared to women first.  In a culture where men dominated and women were not considered as equals but subservient, they would not have created a story where women were the first to see Jesus alive and much less be told by Him to "to and tell the others."
• The most impressive evidence for me is that out of His 12 apostles, TEN of them were martyred for continuing to teach about Jesus and His resurrection.  Who would die for a lie?  But Jesus did not just appear to His chosen few, he appeared to over 500 others! And the Bible isn't the only place where that is recorded, but there are other historical writers of that time that testified to that.

I know I said two reasons but here is a third.  The fact that the Jewish leaders that worked so hard to have Jesus killed cried out that his body was stolen, is also compelling.  Why would they admit that there was no body in the tomb, if indeed there wasn't one?  They would have wanted to keep it quiet. They had no other explanation than the body was stolen, and yet they had no proof of how anyone got past the guards and unsealed a tomb in order for that to happen.

Steve and I recently went to see the movie "Risen".  While it isn't based literally on the Biblical account of Jesus' death and resurrection, it was a great historical depiction of "what if".  We do know there was one who soldier who was convinced at the cross of Jesus and cried out "Surely this was the Son of God"(Mark 15:39).  This movie poses the possibility that perhaps another came to Truth after exploring the resurrection theory?  Of course we don't know, but the movie did a good job of explaining the times and the history of the story.

The bottom line?  What does it matter?  What difference does it make whether Jesus did or didn't raise from the dead?  Simply put, if he didn't...then our entire belief is for naught, we have based it all on a myth or a lie.  It might cause us to live a nicer life but in the end it makes no difference?  And that is why it matters!  If Jesus indeed rose from the dead and the tomb is indeed empty, then He was who He claimed to be, the Son of God and the words he spoke were true.  Mainly that I too will resurrect from the dead one day and will live with Him forever!

The tomb is empty and I hold on to the hope " I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also." (John 14:3) That fact allows me to celebrate Easter, declare the tomb is empty and say "Lord, come quickly!"

"S" is for SAINT

This is week 19 of the Blogging Through the Alphabet Challenge by Through The Calm and Through the Storm and Adventures With Jude.  This week our letter is "S" and I chose the word "SAINT".

First here is the definition of SAINT according to the Miriam Webster dictionary:
     -one officially recognized especially through canonization as preeminent for holiness
     -one of the spirits of the departed in heaven
     -one of God's chosen and usually Christian people

I want to begin by saying that according to 1 Corinthians 1:2 if we call on the name of the Lord we are all saints. There are actually 68 references to the word saint in the Bible.  67 times it is the plural saints and only once is it singular saint.  We don't have to wait and have that title conferred on us by a human entity, if we are in Jesus, God has made us holy and acceptable-a saint.

That being said I have found encouragement in reading stories of some of the Catholic saints (those are individuals who have been set apart or canonized for meeting certain qualifications; one is performing a miracle).  While I don't agree with the teachings of the Catholic church on sainthood, I do find encouragement in their faithful service to their Lord.  That being said, I just wanted to post some favorite quotes by some of the saints.

"Simply believing in the existence of God is not exactly what I would call a commitment. After all, even the devil believes that God exists. Believing has to change the way we live."-Mother Angelica

"The soul's true greatness is in loving God and in humbling oneself in His presence, completely forgetting oneself and believing oneself to be nothing: because the Lord is great, but He is well-pleased only with the humble;He always opposes the proud."-Mary Faustina Kowalska

"A Christian is: a mind through which Christ thinks, a heart through which Christ loves, a voice through which Christ speaks, and a hand through which Christ helps."-Saint Augustine

"Pray as though everything depended on God. Work as though everything depended on you."-Saint Augustine

"Preach the Gospel at all times and when necessary use words."-St Francis of Assisi

"Be ever engaged, so that whenever the devil calls he may find you occupied."-Saint Jerome

"While you are proclaiming peace with your lips, be careful to have it even more fully in your heart."-St Francis of Assisi

"Great occasions for serving God come seldom, but little ones surround us daily"-St Frances de Sales

"And it is the Lord, it is Jesus, Who is my judge.  Therefore I will try always to think leniently of others, that He may judge me leniently, or rather not at all, since He says: "Judge not, and ye shall not be judged."-Therese of Lisieux

I could keep going, but will spare you.  If you would like to read more you can find them here:
http://www.azquotes.com/quote/1070412

I also have a book I enjoy entitled "Saint of the Day" by Leonard Foley.

Saints challenge me to become a better person, but no one influences me more than my Lord, Jesus Christ.  He is the best example of all and the fact that He gave His life so that I could also call myself a saint truly boggles my mind.  I cling to the promise of 2cCorinthians 3:18 "And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit."

"R" is for RIGHTEOUSNESS

This is week 18 of the Blogging Through the Alphabet Challenge by Through The Calm and Through the Storm and Adventures With Jude. This week the letter is "R" and I chose the word RIGHTEOUSNESS to blog about this week.

Yesterday in our sermon the minister mentioned a passage from Isaiah 53.  I came home to look for it and was reminded of verses 4-6:
"Surely he took up our pain    and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray,  each of us has turned to our own way; and the Lord has laid on him
the iniquity of us all"

If Jesus had just taken my sins on His shoulders at the cross it would have been plenty, but the fact that ALL of our sins were placed on Him is just too amazing to wrap my mind around.  Perhaps that is why so many people don't believe is that it is just too unbelievable?  And then when you consider that this was God's plan from the very beginning it is even more amazing! 2 Timothy 1:9 "He has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time."

I know myself all too well and without the blood of Jesus flowing through my veins, I would be so lost.  I look upon God's holiness and all I can do is proclaim the way Isaiah did "I am a man (woman) of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty." (Isaiah 6:5)  Yet I can stand in all confidence before my Lord because of the blood of Jesus and realize and celebrate that all my unrighteousness has become RIGHTEOUSNESS in the eyes of my God. 

" It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption." (I Corinthians 1:30)

Jesus took all my sins, all my unrighteousness (lying, pride, lack of self discipline, anger, bitterness, disobedience, rebellion, gossip, selfishness, (an endless list)) and let me put on Christ Himself "all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ."(Galatians 3:27)  Since Christ Himself is RIGHTEOUS, then I am clothed in His RIGHTEOUSNESS.  It is that RIGHTEOUSNESS that allows me to come into the presence of a Holy God.  

"God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." (2 Corinthians 5:21)

 “He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds you have been healed. (1 Peter 2:24)

"Put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness." Ephesians 4:24

So next time you tell yourself "I just have done too much to be forgiven" speak back to yourself "yes, I am a sinner but thanks to Jesus, our Redeemer (another great "R" word) I have been clothed in RIGHTEOUSNESS and God sees as righteous in his sight.  Then get on your knees and give Him thanks!

"Q" is for Query

Week 17 of the challenge of Blogging Through the Alphabet Challenge by Through The Calm and Through the Storm and Adventures With Jude. This week the letter is "Q" and it is truly a challenge to come up with a word.  If you go the other linkups you will see Quiche, Quesey, Quotes, Quick, Quizzes, Backpack Meals and Quiet Rest.

I looked at a list of "Q" words and was surprised at how many there actually are and how many I had no idea what they meant.  

So I chose qabalah, only to find out it is a Scrabble word, but doesn't have a definition.  

So then I chose quahog and it means "the hard clam (Mercenaria mercenaria), also known as a quahog (or quahaug), round clam, or hard-shell (or hard-shelled)clam, is an edible marine bivalve mollusk that is native to the eastern shores of North America and Central America, from Prince Edward Island to the Yucatán Peninsula. It is one of many unrelated edible bivalves that in the United States are frequently referred to simply as clams, as in the expression "clam digging"" 

Then qindarka caught my attention because I thought a "q" always had to have a "u" with it.  And here is the definition "100 qindarka equal 1 lek in Albania"

And then there is qwerty "denoting the standard layout on English-language typewriters and keyboards, havingq, w, e, r, t, and y as the first keys from the left on the top row of letters."

So I am now feeling better at the reason I didn't know these words :-)  Then it dawned on me as I went to type a title for this post that I did a query on the letter "Q"!

Query "ask a question about something, especially in order to express one's doubts about it or to check its validity or accuracy".

"P" is for PRESIDENT

Week 16 of the challenge of Blogging Through the Alphabet Challenge by Through The Calm and Through the Storm and Adventures With Jude. This week the letter is "P" and what could I choose to blog about on President's Day but PRESIDENTS?

It is no surprise that we will be electing a new President in November of this year.  The debates have been endless this year.  I keep watching in hopes that there will be something new or different that will help me decide who I will vote for.  But this last Saturday night the Republican debate just made my heart sad.  Men, who claim to be Christians not acting very Christian.  The Bible tells us in Matthew chapter 7 that we should be able to judge people by their fruits.  You can't just proclaim to be a Christian, your life must bear fruit that looks like Jesus.  Saying you are a Christian to get a vote doesn't mean you are actually a Christ follower.  So I pray for discernment.

Here are some quotes from some President's from our past, who knew how important it was to bow their knee to the God we ask to bless America.  Another Truth? Just because you say "God Bless America" at the end of every speech, doesn't mean He will bless us if we aren't allowing Him to be central in the governing of our nation.

“Hold fast to the Bible as the sheet anchor of your liberties, write its precepts in your hearts, and practice them in your lives.  To the influence of this book are we indebted for all the progress made in true civilization, and to this we must look as our guide in the future.  Righteousness exalteth a nation but sin is a reproach to any people.” – Ulysses S. Grant, Eighteenth President

“The Bible is the one supreme source of revelation of the meaning of life, the nature of God, and spiritual nature and needs of men.  It is the only guide of life which really leads the spirit in the way of peace and salvation.  America was born a Christian nation.  America was born to exemplify that devotion to the elements of righteousness which are derived from the revelations of Holy Scripture.” – Woodrow Wilson, Twenty eighth President

“Inside the Bible’s pages lie all the answers to all of the problems man has ever known… It is my firm belief that the enduring values presented in its pages have a great meaning for each of us and for our nation.  The Bible can touch our hearts, order our minds, and refresh our souls.” – Ronald Reagan, Fortieth President

"The whole inspiration of our civilization springs from the teachings of Christ and the lessons of the prophets. To read the Bible for these fundamentals is a necessity of American life." -Herbert Hoover, Thirty first President

So if you are reading this post I hope that you will join me in prayer that our next President will again help our nation return to our roots and allow us to once again be "One Nation Under God".

2 Chronicles 7:14

"If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land."

Blogging Through The Alphabet: "O" is for OCEAN

Week 15 of the challenge of Blogging Through the Alphabet Challenge by Through The Calm and Through the Storm and Adventures With Jude.  This week our letter is "O" and I chose the word OCEAN.

I grew up in El Paso, Texas so the ocean was a far piece.  I vaguely remember when I was five us vacationing in California and we visited the ocean, but if I am honest I have many more memories of Disneyland than I do of the Ocean.  The next exposure I would have to what I thought was an ocean as a kid was when I was 10 living in Mobile, Alabama (of course now I know that it was the Gulf of Mexico).  It wouldn't be until I was in my late 20's and moved to Chino, California that I really got to experience the ocean.  There are so many different venues to experience the ocean/beach up and down the coast of California.

I don't really remember when it hit me but I began to really treasure the ocean when I realized that it was a lot like God's grace.  It is continually in motion and constantly washes over us.  We don't have to wait forever, we don't have to swim out to it.  We just have to stand still and sometimes it will be a gentle wash and other times it will knock you over!  But it will always come.  In 1989 I moved to Dallas to get married and since that time, have only had one trip to the beach :-(  I have missed it, but there are times when I want to be reminded so I turn on my wave machine :-)  

I have also always enjoyed the mountains, so Colorado is not a bad place to be, but even here I prefer to spend time in the mountains at cabins that are on a river.  I just enjoy the sound of rushing water.  I have not been blessed to travel the world and there are many places I haven't been.  But out of the places I have been, Big Sur, California is one of my favorite places because you actually have the mountains and the ocean at the same spot.  Steve and I were able to go there on our honeymoon as one of our stops up the California coast.  I just remember thinking "this is heaven on earth" :-)  

That was long before the days of digital photos so I have none, but found this one on the internet.

Of the places I have visited I also enjoyed Kauai, again the mountains and the beach together, but you can't access the beach, except by boat on the mountainous side. 

But on the other side of the island there are a lot of pretty coves.

So all this talk about God's grace and oceans, what is grace?  The technical definition is "the love and mercy given to us by God because God desires us to have it, not because of anything we have done to earn it." It is a gift from God because we are sinners.  None of us go through life without sinning.  Yet there is nothing any of us can do on our own to get forgiveness of our sins.  It only comes through the sacrifice that His son made on the cross.  When we accept Jesus as the Lord of our life and are baptized with him to become a new creation, we get the gift of the Holy Spirit and with that we receive grace.  Romans 5:15 "For if many died through one man's trespass, much more have the grace of God and the free gift by the grace of that one man Jesus Christ abounded for many."  That wonderful gift ensures that each time I sin, I confess and do my best to change and God's grace washes over me and my sins are forgiven as far as the east is from the west. (Psalms 103:12)

Guess I am just a visual person because all the snow we received last week also reminded me of this verse:

Anyway....got a little sidetracked from the beginning of my post.  But if you take a trip to the ocean anytime in the near future, put your toes in the water and close your eyes and then imagine when each wave hits you it is the grace of God and say a prayer of thanksgiving for His love for you!

I am sure others had better "O" posts than I did!  Go check them out here:  

Blogging Through The Alphabet: "N" is for Never Once

Week 14 of the challenge of Blogging Through the Alphabet Challenge by Through The Calm and Through the Storm and Adventures With Jude. This week the letter is "N".  I had been thinking of what I would blog about and then in worship yesterday we sang one of my most favorite songs and I thought "Oh I can blog about 'Never Once'".

A few years ago I was asked to give my testimony at a Ladies Retreat and I had decided to use Matt Redman's Song, "Never Once" as the theme for my talk.  If you are new to my blog you don't know much of my story, but suffice it to say God has brought me through many trials, which I shared at that retreat and was able to testify that through it all "Never Once" was I ever left alone to face those trials by myself.  God has always proved Himself to be faithful.  I actually blogged about that fact and the "Never Once" song on May 4, 2012 (if you want you can find that post here http://lynnslittlelessons.blogspot.com/search?q=%22never+once.

If you are going through a trial and want some hope and to be uplifted go listen to Matt's song.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n1bXG4WIesA

I always enjoy reading the stories behind songs and here you can read why Matt Redman wrote the song http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dR77PdCiU68

Just in case you don't have time to go out to the links, here are the lyrics:
Standing on this mountaintop
Looking just how far we've come
Knowing that for every step
You were with us

Kneeling on this battle ground
Seeing just how much You've done
Knowing every victory
Is Your power in us

Scars and struggles on the way
But with joy our hearts can say
Yes, our hearts can say

Never once did we ever walk alone
Never once did You leave us on our own
You are faithful, God, You are faithful

Never once did we ever walk alone
Never once did You leave us on our own
You are faithful, God, You are faithful
You are faithful, God, You are faithful

Scars and struggles on the way
But with joy our hearts can say
Never once did we ever walk alone
Carried by Your constant grace

Every step we are breathing in Your grace
Evermore we'll be breathing out Your praise
You are faithful, God, You are faithful
You are faithful, God, You are faithful

I hope that you can also say with full assurance that "Never Once" have you ever had to walk alone and if you can't I hope you will come to that realization that you are desperately loved by a God who wants to walk beside you every step.  And even though it is hard to understand at times the "why's" of a situation He is allowing you to go through that the saying is true "If He brings you to it, He will bring you through it." His purposes are always perfect and for our benefit. 

I was just wondering since it was "Never Once" can this also count as my "O" post ? :-)

Blogging Through The Alphabet: "M" is for Marriage

We are half way through the challenge of Blogging Through the Alphabet Challenge by Through The Calm and Through the Storm and Adventures With Jude. This week the letter is "M" and I chose to blog about Marriage.

Most of the couples my age are celebrating 40-45 years of marriage, but Steve and I are only on our 26th year because God did not bring us together until we were 36.  That in itself is a fun story for another time.  I had prayed for a long time that my husband would be strong in his relationship with God.  I don't really remember praying for anything else in a husband.  Steve and I often comment on how we are opposite we are.  You name the subject and we are on opposite sides of the spectrum.  I am a spender, he is a saver.  I enjoy spontaneity, he likes routine.  I enjoy playing games, he enjoys reading.  I always thought I would make a great catch for some man because I really enjoy camping, hunting and fishing and can even bait my own hook and gut my own fish :-) Steve doesn't have any interest in being outdoors (except to shovel our neighbors snow :-))  We don't enjoy the same kind of movies, he enjoys bloody war movies or slapstick comedies.  I enjoy romantic comedies or true life stories. I enjoy salads and vegetables, he is a meat and potatoes man.  I could go on and on.  

But we have a wonderful marriage in spite of all of that and it is for one reason and one reason only. The one thing we do have in common is our love for the Lord!  

 Because Steve loves God, when he proposed to me he quoted Ephesians 5:25, except he personalized it. "Lynn, as your husband I promise to love you the way that Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her...I will love you as I love myself and I will give my life up for you."  I don't remember how many years into our marriage we also made the commitment to each other to live out Romans 12:10 "to outdo one another in showing honor."  Now that has been a real challenge for me because it is really hard to outdo Steve.  He is always trying to serve me and must ask me at least 5 times a day "is there anything I can do for you?"  But when you work to put your spouses needs before your own and they do the same, marriage can flourish (even if you are opposites).

About 15 years ago, Steve and I became marriage facilitators for Joe Beam's Dynamic Marriage, which has now been changed to Marriage Helper (you can find more information here:  http://www.marriagehelper.com) During that training we learned an invaluable concept called the "Love Bank".  Basically the principle is that when I do something positive for Steve, I make deposits in the "Love Bank" and when I do or say something negative I make withdrawals.  The key is to make sure I make 5 deposits for every withdrawal and at any point I bankrupt Him, our marriage will be in serious trouble.  Again, because Steve is so much better at deposits than I am, I have to work hard to keep up with him.  And I have learned that saying "I am sorry, I was wrong" can be a large deposit!

When we realize that our love for the Lord spills over on our spouse, there is no greater gift that we can give our spouse than having a strong relationship with the Lord.  I glorify God by loving Steve in a matter that pleases God. Steve forgives me, because he knows how much the Lord has forgiven Him and the same for me.  Our goal is to help each other get to heaven, so that means holding one another accountable.  My favorite time of the day is right after lunch each day as Steve and I spend some time in God's Word together and pray together.  But we also each have our own private times of prayer and study with the Lord.  Another way Steve and I are opposites is he is much more disciplined than I am.  Every year he reads the Bible from Genesis to Revelation.  One year I tried to do it with him and while I read more than ever, I still did not complete it.  I am more into reading books about God or other's relationships with Him as well as being in 3 Bible studies I have to complete each week.  The fact that we are doing different things does give us some great things to talk about.

I do want to mention one more thing that Steve and I want to get better at in our marriage.  We really don't argue very often, but when we do we want one of us to be led by the Spirit to say "Stop.  Let us say a prayer before we continue."  That could be together or just go off by ourselves and both pray before coming back together.  The times we have done that, makes a tremendous difference in solving the difference of opinions.

So I am glad that I chose MARRIAGE as my "M" word, as it gave me a reason to look again at the blessing I have in being married to a man that loves the Lord and was the exact answer to my prayers!  

I Am participating in the Blogging Through the Alphabet Challenge by Through The Calm and Through the Storm and Adventures With Jude. This week our letter is "L" and I chose LOVE.  I realize that Carter Chaos also chose LOVE for their "L" word and Mom's Heart also blogged about "love-hate" relationships between animals and certain family members. But LOVE was also my "L" word, except I want to share about my pet peeve about the word LOVE.

I think LOVE is one of the most powerful words in our vocabulary, but I  feel like we have trivialized it by overusing it.  Sometime in the last year I decided that I wasn't going to use the word LOVE in ways that I thought were inappropriate, i.e.:

     -I love chocolate

     -I love that dress on you

     -I love watching American Idol

     -I just love spending time with my family

     -I love living in Colorado

etc........

Since I made that decision, it is interesting how many times I have caught myself and the challenge that it has been to replace love with another word.

     -I really enjoy chocolate

     -That dress looks very nice on you.

     -I think there is some really good talent on American Idol.

     -One of my favorite things to do is to spend time with my family.

     -Colorado has to be one of the best places to live!

This is the definition of LOVE in Miriam Webster:
1. a:  strong affection for another arising out of kinship or personal ties; love for a child
     (2) attraction based on sexual desire:
    b:  an assurance of affection love; affection and tenderness felt by lovers (3) affection based on admiration, benevolence, or common interests
2:  warm attachment, enthusiasm, or devotion
3:  the object of attachment, devotion, or admiration, first love (1): a beloved
4:  unselfish loyal and benevolent concern for the good of another: as (1) fatherly concern 
     of God for humankind (2) brotherly concern for others 
     b: a person's adoration of God

    I personally think LOVE should be saved and used in the context of relationships. There is a commitment attached to LOVE.  The best description of LOVE is found in 1 Corinthians 13:1-8:

    "If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast,[but do not have love, I gain nothing. 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. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails."

2.     How can we read that and then say "I love Diet Coke?" :-)