The Journey of Learning How To Love Again

Love is ambition, and you never insult another man's ambition, regardless of the circumstance. That's his dignity, what he takes pride in doing. You don't know his life story, and you haven't made any attempts to learn it. So, have some decency and class in the manner in which you conduct yourself, as this only reflects the lack of love you carry for yourself. At the end of the day, all that this judgment does is make the lazy ambitious man work twenty-four hours on the clock to prove you wrong anyway. You come to bring shame and guilt upon yourself.

Speaking of ambition, we often become persistent about the things we want in life or wish to do. You see, these things all come from the image that we hide beneath, which is love. I want to transform the youth of this generation. I want to leave behind a legacy that reinforces the goal of paying it forward. I want young people to dream big and think outside of the box they've been limited to since birth. These are desires that come from the heart, which inherently seek the betterment of others.

Now, the man who desires to attain a better physique, immense wealth, or a greater social status may be presumed to be selfish. Still, upon further analysis, one must credit this sort of ambitious man for his perseverance and drive, as it takes a hint of self-love, or devotion to himself, to attain it, whether he recognizes it or not.

We are merely vessels in a bigger scheme to transform the realities of ourselves and those we interact with. Tomorrow is not promised, as they say, but why should that prevent us young men from experiencing the bittersweetness of pursuing the greatness that lies within understanding the mechanisms, boundaries, qualities, and outcomes of what love truly entails? Thus, life is a test to see how resilient, self-controlled, genuine, and hopeful we can be in our pursuit of love.

Revisiting past experiences with our minds, but committing our hearts to innovating a new system of behaviors that combat our deviations from acting with love towards ourselves and others. Some of these behaviors may be adaptive, depending on the situation; for example, a failed relationship may prompt you to find a purposeful outlet to help you manage your negative emotions. I want to share with you a personal method that has always worked for me.

Now, having spoken in depth about the journey of love and its avenues, we must turn to the concept of lust. Lust is a destructive vice that branches off the most unnoticed vice of all-pride. A lustful man is prideful in thinking he knows how to pleasure himself with the things of the world better than the joy that God could bring him. His lust is the idol that remains in his sights and develops the need to fuel it to function.

This vice is no longer a temporary desire but the illusion of a permanent fix to fill the void of meaning within his heart. All voices of reason that enter this man's mind are disputed by his illogical reasoning that choosing to fulfill this urge, distracting him from his greater purpose, is satisfactory. This defilement, that is, fornication by external constraints or by oneself, commences his spiritual death.

He cannot give birth to his most conscientious self; with these lustful pitfalls, he is actively extinguishing any spark of life he might display, all to indulge the convenience of his mind's deviations and the devil's deceptive, infiltrative thoughts.

Lust, being the antithesis of love, can evidently kill a man's ambitions and cast away all intentions of selfless behavior, as the lustful man cannot be trusted with anything of value. They're loyal only to their temporary desires and are ruled by their impulses to keep the attention of those from whom they seek validation.