Free Newsletters - Foot-in-Mouth Disease

If it was up to Kylie, my five-year-old, the black Labrador retriever in our house would be so stuffed full of chocolate and bagels that she would either float in a parade or make the veterinarian a very rich man.

But, much to the chagrin of both Kylie and our dog, my wife and I intervene. We know that, if given the chance, Honey (our dog) would eat twelve not-so-square meals each day. And we can't let that happen.

The other day, as Kylie attempted to sneak yet another a piece of "people food" to the dog, I was forced to remind her yet again why we eat "people food"—and Honey doesn't.

I told her that it all comes down to love. For the dog, that is.

"Love?" you ask. Yes, that's exactly it. When we love someone—or, in Honey's case, something—we don't regularly give them what they want. We give them what they need. We seek what's best for them.

Sounds simple, doesn't it? But maybe it's not as simple as you might think. Just consider the hordes of spoiled, unruly children who seem never to have been taught how to act around adults. Or consider the hordes of spoiled, unruly adults who don't know how to act around children.

It seems that we all need to re-learn the true nature of love.

Yes, God wants us to love others; in fact, he insists upon it. But let's never forget that loving someone doesn't mean catering to their every whim or not correcting them when they're going to hurt themselves or someone else. Love can never be reduced to license or sappy sentimentality—truth and justice are its bread and butter.

Understanding the true nature of love may mean making changes in the way we relate to our kids, our parents, and our friends. But the change is for the better. When we model a righteous (not self-righteous) love, we will be teaching the world a badly needed lesson about the love of the Lord. And we will stop contributing to self-destructive behaviors.

I just wish my daughter was old enough to read this week's column. It would save us both a lot of trouble.

— Matt Donnelly, for the ChristianityToday.com staff