What do Landon Carter, Jacob Black, Edward Cullen, and Peter Kavinsky all have in common?

With the passing of Valentine’s Day last weekend and after watching A Walk to Remember, Twilight, and having a To All the Boys movie marathon all in one weekend, there have been several times this week when my mind has visualized the picture of love in my life, and rightfully so. Any girl would dream about marrying the high school bad boy after graduation, swoon from the charm of being Edward Cullen and be stuck in a love triangle between Robert Pattinson & Taylor Lautner, or be swept into the comforting arms of Peter Kavinsky (especially that last one :-). Movies and TV shows in the Western world portray the ideal love stories with 2 people that, after the initial misunderstanding of some sort and resolution of that misunderstanding, never break each other’s hearts and live happily ever after. 

I must admit, there are times in my life, especially recently, when I get very down about how I don’t have someone to make me feel this way. Who doesn’t want a perfectly romantic love story to tell their children or have a movie made about? It would be so nice to have a man that will love, cherish, protect you forever, and make you feel like the most special girl in the world. Our American media portrays the idea that our worth and identity is found in our significant other and our love toward them. The world tells us that complete fulfillment and satisfaction in our partner or spouse. 

But then, I am reminded that the only person that is perfect and steadfast in his love is Jesus. There are countless times throughout Scripture that we see the love of God described: 

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

Lamentations 3:22-23

Give thanks to the God of heaven, for his steadfast love endures forever.

Psalm 136:26

So we have come to know and to believe that love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.

I John 4:16

I Corinthians 13:4-8 tells us that, “Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away.” 

Jesus is the only one capable of loving us fully in this way. No matter how hard we as humans try, we will never be able to love someone perfectly and completely in this way, nor will we find someone to love us in this way either. I wish the Church specifically would stop prioritizing marriage and couples over everything else as if that is the most important thing to God Himself. While marriage, love, and intimacy with a spouse is wonderful and beautifully ordained by God, no human relationship will ever be able to fulfill us in the same manner that God’s love will. It is steadfast, never ceasing, always abounding, and mighty to save. God’s love will never fail us or disappoint us. We will never be let down by God’s love.  

So, what do Landon Carter, Jacob Black, Edward Cullen, and Peter Kavinsky all have in common (other than the fact that they will make any girl swoon 😊)? Well, they point us to Christ by giving us an earthly glimpse of what His love for us looks like. Let us look at our fantasized notions of perfect love as a great, heartfelt example of what love should look like and then remember that God truly and actually loves us in this way as only He can. God’s love fully satisfies all our needs.