The imitation of love is all around us.  It has become accepted because it has gone on for so long.  One person summed it up not too long ago when he said his love is automatic.

Automatic means never having to demonstrate any act of love.  Automatic means a person should know love is there without ever getting any type of acknowledgement or response.  Automatic means knowing overtures and efforts are enjoyed but receive no acknowledgement in return.  Only silent treatments are returned for even the best efforts.   Automatic means being placed on one’s shelf and forgotten, but keep those efforts coming anyway.

This has become the normal routine for many people these days.  Once trust is earned by proper responses and godly fellowship a “no need to respond” attitude develops.  Earned trust for some people means a trophy and not a life long friend.  Once people have become a trophy they can forget about being treated any way but with a silent treatment.

Who needs friends like this?  There is no need to apologize to them and for sure no need to have such trophy winners in our lives.  It is no honor to be a trophy on a human being’s shelf.  Even with God, the only people He places on His shelf are the unusable people.

We are to hate this type of wrong doings by arrogant people and hold tightly to the genuine love of Jesus Christ.  Jesus will see to it we are used wisely in this life and He will see to it we have friends of value to accompany us along the way.

Romans 12:9  New Living Translation

Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good.