Just before Impractical Grace went to press, my publisher caught a potential copyright problem and had a part removed and the text edited. It was the lyrics to a song by Shenandoah, “I Want To Be Loved Like That.” The text would have been on page 108 of the book, but here is how it was originally and I think the point is better made by seeing the lyrics. So here is your insider view of how it should have been written: It comes at a point in the book where Anna is talking with her sister about trying to save her marriage or not.
“You’re right,” Anna replied in a discouraged tone. “Don’t get mad at me, but I can’t help but think that all of it would be easier with a different guy. Here, maybe this expresses how I feel,” Anna said as she shuffled through her purse and pulled out her MP3 player. After finding what she wanted, she listened for a bit and then handed Joyce the headphones. The music played, and Joyce listened to the lyrics:
Daddy never gave Momma a diamond ring
Momma never worried for anything
What he gave her came from the heart
A bond that was never torn apart
I want to be loved like that
I want to be loved like that
A promise you can’t take back
If you’re gonna love me
I want to be loved like that
An old man kneeling all alone
Plants his flowers in a garden of stone
For seven years now she’s been gone
And his devotion is still going strong
I want to be loved like that
I want to be loved like that
A promise you can’t take back
If you’re gonna love me
I want to be loved like that
“Is it so wrong that ‘I want to be loved like that’?” Anna said, repeating the words from the song.
“We all want to be loved like that,” Joyce replied. “I think it is a universal desire to want to be loved with the kind of unselfish, perfect love that’s expressed in the song. That is the compelling kind of love that the Lord has for us, which draws us to Him. ‘Grace’ as your bishop put it.”
“And shouldn’t that love also be in our marriage?” Anna asked to make a point.
“Absolutely, but there is a mistake the song makes,” Joyce replied after pausing to think. “Sure we want people to love us like that. But are we only willing to love others like that if they first love us with that kind of love? With the gospel of Jesus Christ, Jesus wants us to be the one to love like that first. He wants us to be the initiator. Jesus wants us to be the one to start it and infuse that kind of gracious love into all our relationships.”
“So the Lord wants me to start loving Mitch with that gracious love,” Anna said as they both looked off at the kids playing.
“Actually,” Joyce began again. “What I said about Jesus wanting us to be the initiator isn’t exactly true. The Savior has been the initiator. Jesus started it. He has shown that love to us so that now we can go start that love in the relationships around us. He didn’t wait for us to first love Him. He started loving us first.”
So there you have it: the uncut, unedited version. Don’t you feel special? Not that the above was any huge addition to the message of the book, but that is how it should have read originally. I am so grateful for our Savior who, despite all our failings, initiated the most incredible love that any of us will ever experience. A love that changes everything with those who discover it.
“You’re right,” Anna replied in a discouraged tone. “Don’t get mad at me, but I can’t help but think that all of it would be easier with a different guy. Here, maybe this expresses how I feel,” Anna said as she shuffled through her purse and pulled out her MP3 player. After finding what she wanted, she listened for a bit and then handed Joyce the headphones. The music played, and Joyce listened to the lyrics:
Daddy never gave Momma a diamond ring
Momma never worried for anything
What he gave her came from the heart
A bond that was never torn apart
I want to be loved like that
I want to be loved like that
A promise you can’t take back
If you’re gonna love me
I want to be loved like that
An old man kneeling all alone
Plants his flowers in a garden of stone
For seven years now she’s been gone
And his devotion is still going strong
I want to be loved like that
I want to be loved like that
A promise you can’t take back
If you’re gonna love me
I want to be loved like that
“Is it so wrong that ‘I want to be loved like that’?” Anna said, repeating the words from the song.
“We all want to be loved like that,” Joyce replied. “I think it is a universal desire to want to be loved with the kind of unselfish, perfect love that’s expressed in the song. That is the compelling kind of love that the Lord has for us, which draws us to Him. ‘Grace’ as your bishop put it.”
“And shouldn’t that love also be in our marriage?” Anna asked to make a point.
“Absolutely, but there is a mistake the song makes,” Joyce replied after pausing to think. “Sure we want people to love us like that. But are we only willing to love others like that if they first love us with that kind of love? With the gospel of Jesus Christ, Jesus wants us to be the one to love like that first. He wants us to be the initiator. Jesus wants us to be the one to start it and infuse that kind of gracious love into all our relationships.”
“So the Lord wants me to start loving Mitch with that gracious love,” Anna said as they both looked off at the kids playing.
“Actually,” Joyce began again. “What I said about Jesus wanting us to be the initiator isn’t exactly true. The Savior has been the initiator. Jesus started it. He has shown that love to us so that now we can go start that love in the relationships around us. He didn’t wait for us to first love Him. He started loving us first.”
So there you have it: the uncut, unedited version. Don’t you feel special? Not that the above was any huge addition to the message of the book, but that is how it should have read originally. I am so grateful for our Savior who, despite all our failings, initiated the most incredible love that any of us will ever experience. A love that changes everything with those who discover it.
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