Love Is Strength
By Mallory Slocum
February 29, 2016
If you have read one of my earlier blog entries you will know that Once Upon a Time is my favorite television show. There are many reasons why I love this show. The growth of the characters, the use of realistic situations, and the writing is phenomenal, including quotes that raise powerful meanings to consciousness. Powerful quotes possess the ability to change the way we think about one thing or another.
Even though the spring premiere is not until March, I have been watching some of the earlier seasons. One of the most notable quotes from season two was when the character, Cora (the mother of the Evil Queen, Regina), says, “Love is weakness.” Over the first two seasons, it seemed that she lived by this motto. Cora felt her mission in life was to gain power, by getting her daughter to become queen. Regina, in Latin, means “queen.” In order for Cora to succeed, she had to master dark magic and her teacher, Rumpelstiltskin, told her that love is a weakness. Cora found this to be true because she fell in love with him. She knew this would interfere with her quest for power. The only choice Cora had was to remove the obstacle standing in her way: her heart. Cora did this because she saw it as her weakness. She believed that she could succeed without it.
It was in the second season that Cora found out that she was wrong. Cora tells Emma, the product of true love, that love is weakness. Emma counters her claim with the most accurate response. She tells Cora that love is strength. Emma learned that love makes her stronger by experiencing love from her child, parents, and friends. Most importantly, she learned to reciprocate that love. This has helped her to become a stronger person.
I am in agreement with Emma. There are some people who may agree with Cora, however many others concur that she is wrong. Love makes us stronger. How many of you feel that you are a stronger person because of the love you have from your spouse or the love you have for your spouse? Does the same apply to your children? Do you feel stronger because of your love for the Lord?
I would answer yes to all of these questions, especially the last one. Like spousal love, our love for God is reciprocated. This wonderful gift makes us stronger. “I have the strength for everything through Him who empowers me.” (Philippians 4:13, NAB) I feel stronger because of the love I have for God and the love he has for me. With this love I feel like any accomplish anything.
I feel blessed that I have God’s love. So take the time to ask yourself: do I feel stronger because I have God’s love? Does the love I have for my spouse, children, and friends give me strength? I hope you will answer yes to these questions.
