Love the Lord your God with all your heart ?

[Thomas Kelly252525]

robvalue,

Thanks.  I think thoughtful answers are right for rational discussion.

robvalue,

"Cheers, no problem "

You're welcome. I think it's good when people want to do good to other people and don't want to think of it as being an inconvenience to them.  I think the strength of great patience may be shown in thinking that way.

Do you think it's fair to say that if someone does or says something to please you then you love them ?

"I find your wording confusing. Are you saying I love them as a result, or by definition? I assume the former as the latter doesn't appear to make sense."

I was wondering what your thoughts were about how love happens.

"If they do or say one thing to please me? No, I wouldn't necessarily love them after that. That's pretty unlikely unless it was something truly astonishing."

"I wouldn't necessarily love someone even if they did and said loads of things to please me. It would depend on many factors, and in a lot of ways it's out of my control how much I like or love someone."

I think it's possible someone may work to please you by what they say or do to you one time and you may be pleased by it and experience what you may think of as love.

If someone does or says something to displease you then you don't love them ?

"Again if it's one thing, then that's unlikely to stop me loving someone, unless it's something really bad."

I think it's right to have goodwill all the time and you may see partly what I mean by goodwill below.  Do you think the word love has the same definition as the word goodwill ?

"If someone I love starts doing a high proportions of things to displease me, then it's quite possible I will stop loving them."

I think we may have similar thoughts about this.  I'm thinking a person may have goodwill all the time and be sometimes displeased by what someone says or does.

That goodwill is constant in you if pleased by someone or displeased by them ?

"I don't understand what this means, sorry. If you mean do I (try to) treat people with respect regardless of my opinion of them, that is correct. I try and give people a "minimum package", instead of returning whatever they do to me in kind. Those people who give me a reason to like them more will receive more from me in return."

I think we have had similar thoughts. By goodwill I was meaning things like not wanting to return evil for evil or insult for insult, doing or saying to people the same as I want someone to do or say to me if I were in their position, working for people advantage even in disagreements, wanting to be impartial, wanting to do justice. I think sometimes there may be people who are beyond being helped and there is nothing more we can give them.

That if someone pleases you all the time that you are close to them and you love them ?

"If someone pleases me all the time... I'm not too sure what this means. If it means their company causes me to be pleased, then that may well mean I love them. It depends on how much. If they please me a great deal all the time, or even the majority of the time, I probably love them in some capacity."

I think my level of goodwill shouldn't change. I think a person may not change their level of goodwill and be pleased many times.