Alien Love

What This Is (and Is Not) Hello. My name is Kevin Abell. You probably gathered that after reading the name on the front cover. Before you dive in to this book about love, there are some things that I would like to share with you. I want to do this in order to make sure that you aren’t being set up for disappointment. You might end up feeling let down regardless, but I can’t stand the thought of you continuing on in search of something that isn’t here. I don’t know why you read books. Out of the few books that I have read, many seem to be little more than long essays. They are designed in order to try and reveal some grave injustice at work in the world and show us the way to address it. Some books are written as a call to arms or to advocate a course of action. Others are informative. This work is none of the above. If you are looking at this for information, you will probably become disenchanted. To be completely forthcoming, this book is no more about love than my last book was about healing. My last book had the appearance of a book about healing, and that’s exactly how many people received it. At the heart of this work, as well as my last, is a signpost which is meant to move us towards Jesus. What you are holding in your hands is this; A Journey. A journey is much different than an essay. An essay is written by someone who believes that they know enough about a topic in order to inform and convince you of their thesis. I beg you not to proceed in this way because I know how disappointing it can be when you purchase a product that doesn’t do what you thought it was supposed to do. Before you read further, please address this question. Are you willing to set out on a journey? If you aren’t, if you are expecting this to go in a certain direction, either to the right or to the left, you won’t likely find what you are looking for. On The Word Love Itself Whether by design, or poor recognition, authentic love has become an elusive phenomenon. It is a word that we use to describe our affection for everything from ice cream to our boyfriend. It seems to be something that we both receive as well as something that can be made. I don’t know how it got this way. Overall, love is a word which is unable to capture all that it was intended to describe. It carries with itself so much baggage that we really don’t know what to do with it. Whenever a person speaks on love, it’s always difficult to know exactly what they mean. We tend to confuse it with human sexuality and romance. The word might be in reference to affection. It is often used to describe acts of kindness. I don’t know exactly who has the power to make up words, nor do I know who authenticates the decision. I do know that the word was destined for failure. If you are reading through the Bible, depending on whether you are reading through a text which has been written in Greek or Hebrew, there are approximately 20 different words that might form the foundation for what is written on the page before you. Words meaning ‘affection’ are often translated to read, ‘love’. Words that imply self sacrifice are also often translated into love. Likewise, the word love is also used to express benevolence. So the word love itself, has been used to describe different facets of human life, to the point where we really have little sense of the intent of the one who uses is. Generally speaking, there are 3 main ancient words which lie at the heart of what we would understand as being love. ahab – affection agape – selfless phileo - friendship The word, ‘thelo’ also deserves mention. It has to do with our will, our desire, and choosing to love. Other words which form the basis for love are associated with the love between a husband and wife, the love between family members, and even romance. Henceforth, it is my opinion that the word itself is unable to fulfill all of its literary obligations. Since there are so many underlying meanings behind the word itself, please don’t expect me to hit the nail on the head. If you are looking for further definitions, you won’t find it in the pages which follow. If however, you are looking for Jesus, I hope that you walk away from the experience feeling satisfied.