6 a.m. Conversations

Let me tell you something that took me years to understand and a few unnecessary arguments to really learn:

Healthy love doesn’t compete. It collaborates.

Competing love keeps score.
Collaborative love builds something worth keeping.

Competing love sounds like, “Well I did this, so you should do that.”
Collaborative love sounds like, “How can we make this lighter for both of us?”

Competing love turns disagreements into debates.
Collaborative love turns them into conversations.

Now I’m not talking about playful banter. A little “I told you so” over who left the cabinet open? That’s harmless. I’m talking about the deeper stuff. The quiet rivalry that creeps into relationships when ego gets louder than empathy.

A grown man eventually realizes that love was never supposed to feel like a scoreboard.

When you start counting who apologized last, who sacrificed more, who planned the date, who initiated the conversation, you stop building and start measuring. And measuring creates distance.

I’ve been there.
Where the conversation shifts from solving the issue to proving the point.
Where the tone gets sharper because nobody wants to “lose.”
Where peace could’ve been protected if pride had just stepped aside.

But here’s the truth that humbles you over time:

When you win against your partner, you still lose.

Real love understands that you’re on the same team. And teammates don’t compete for dominance, they compete for unity. They cover each other’s weak spots. They communicate. They adjust. They trust the bigger picture.

Peaceful love doesn’t ask, “Who’s right?”
It asks, “How do we move forward together?”

And happiness shows up when collaboration becomes the norm. When both people can say, “I don’t need to overpower you to feel valued.” When success is shared. When decisions feel mutual. When vulnerability isn’t used as leverage.

Sometimes we compete because we’re insecure. Because we want to feel important. Because we don’t want to feel overlooked. But mature love reminds us that significance doesn’t require superiority.

You don’t have to outshine your partner to matter.
You don’t have to dominate to feel respected.
You don’t have to win every disagreement to feel secure.

When love is collaborative, it feels lighter. Conversations slow down. Laughter comes easier. Tension dissolves faster. And you stop bracing for impact every time something needs to be discussed.

That kind of love feels peaceful.
And peaceful love?
That’s the kind that lasts.

Loving by HIS Word–“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves.” Philippians 2:3

Humility doesn’t weaken love. It strengthens it. When ego lowers, unity rises.

6 a.m. Quote–“Love doesn’t win by overpowering, it wins by partnering.”

Marlon Dean–6 a.m. Conversations “Where love meets faith, one morning at a time”