There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. 1 John 4:18

What is love? Love is such a strong word. People have come to throw this word around like any other word in the american vocabulary, and that sometimes, can get you hurt.

I have been there. I have been hurt multiple times because I thought I was in love.

After thinking I HAD to be with someone for so long, I knew that I did not have to be with anyone.

But something that I realized was that I had to love myself and love God even more before I could ever love someone else.

You have to know how to love yourself before anyone else can take on the role of loving you. So many people have the fear of being single and rush into something that they are not ready for. In the process of that, they lose themselves and turn into someone else. I have been there and done that and I know that I never want to be that way again.

After hurting and hurting, I knew that I was not happy. I could not be happy with myself or with someone else. So I knew one more option; God. I could be happy with God. I just had to open my heart to him and let him into my life. I knew if I could not be happy while I was single, then I could not be happy in a relationship. I knew that once I loved God more than I loved myself, he would make sure I was mentally and spiritually able to handle loving someone else.

Loving God is the most important thing you can do with your life. You are brought here to love him and praise him. I know that I am loved by God and nothing can ever take that away from me. I love God more than I love myself because he is always going to be prepared for anything that could ever happen to me.

God always has something for you, a key for every problem, a light for every shadow, a relief for every sorrow, and a plan for every tomorrow.

I always knew that something was not right with my relationships, and when I finally found out that it was the lack of God, I knew I had to change. I never have been closer to God then I am now. I could not be more proud of myself.

I finally realized that until I had became strong enough being alone with just God, I never knew if I was choosing someone out of love or loneliness.

Just remember that sometimes God will let you hit rock bottom just so you can realize that he is the rock at the bottom.

So before you try to love someone else, please make sure that you love yourself and you love God even more. Gods love is like the ocean. You can see the beginning but you will never see the end.

But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.Psalm 86:15