The Power of Love

You wrote:

In many ways, the ability to receive love is one of the hardest things to do

The first part of this post assumes that we have a common understanding of what love is.

In your mind does receiving love involve any action from the recipient? Is it not possible to love someone from afar?

Ok with this common understanding of what love is, let's take the scenario where one professes one's love for someone to that someone ... then the recipient can say:

a) "Thanks for that, I understand that you love me, that's great, I don't think I love you back, bye" Has the recipient received love in this scenario?

b) "That's marvellous I love too, bye" - has the recipient received love in this scenario?

c) "That's marvellous I love too, let's spend all of our lives togther" - has the recipient received love in that scenario?

d) Something else

You see what I am getting at? There are various responses that an individual can have to the news that someone loves them, whether that someone be God or a human being.

Now if God is saying to all of us, I love you and want to spend all eternity with you, what should our response be? It can be any one of a) to d) I guess. Is your question not about receiving love .. but really about c) - about reciprocating love. Or is it that you really want to be in the c) category but you don't really believe that God loves you? I am unclear!

The second part of this post asks "what do you mean by love?" Perhaps we don't share a common view. Is love about putting an others needs before your own? Or some chemical rush, or both?