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It's your typical romance. Boy meets girl. Boy and girl fall in love. Obstacles keep them apart. They overcome the obstacles. Happily ever after.

Except for the vampires. And werewolves.

OK, so maybe the Twilight saga isn't so typical after all. Especially considering the four-book saga has become one of the hottest pop culture phenomena since Harry Potter, prompting midnight release parties and vampire proms. Typical teen romances don't cause that type of response. There's something decidedly different about Twilight.

I picked up the first book out of curiosity, mostly to see what my friends were raving about. And, to be honest, I'm always looking for a good story.

If you haven't read it, Twilight is the story of teenage Bella who falls in love with Edward, a 108-year-old vampire frozen at age 17. Edward and his family have chosen to not feed on humans, hunting only animals. Bella and Edward, throughout the series, are torn between their feelings for each other and the inevitable problems that arise from a human-vampire romance.

After reading all four books—Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, and Breaking Dawn—I started to think back. What was I taking away from them? What do these books say about God, about life, and about love? In over 2,300 pages of reading, there's a lot to digest. What are the key ideas and attitudes in the Twilight saga? A few stood out to me as a Christian.

Bella and Edward show us a type of romantic love that's powerful, passionate, and perfect. They are ready to sacrifice anything for each other. They always try to act in the other's best interest. They are thrilled to simply be in each other's presence. Their biggest conflict is whether or not Bella should become a vampire: She wants to spend eternity with Edward, but he doesn't want her to forfeit her humanity for him. Pretty different from the fights between most young couples.

Bella and Edward's relationship actually exemplifies a lot of what the Bible says love should be. Think about the Bible's description: "Love is patient, love is kind." (1 Corinthians 13:4); "Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends" (John 15:13). Of course, no real couple can be this perfect all the time. But these passages, and stories like Bella and Edward's, remind us of the perfect love that God has for us. God intends for romantic love to reflect his deep desire for an intimate relationship with each of us. The Bible even calls us his bride! (Isaiah 62:5) While there may not be an Edward or Bella in our lives, God's love is a perfect love that never ends and never fails.

Temptation provides a lot of the compelling tension in the Twilight world. The vampire in Edward is tempted by Bella's scent—it's all he can do to not devour her at first. And then as their relationship progresses, they face a different physical temptation: sex.

Yet the characters show an impressive mastery of temptation. Edward makes up his mind that he will not eat Bella, no matter how hungry he feels or how good she smells to him. He decides that something is more important than his hunger: Bella's life. And when Bella pressures Edward to have sex with her, he explains his belief that sex is for marriage, and it's important to him that they wait. Even though he wants her just as much as she does him, Edward decides that doing the right thing is more important than doing what feels good.

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