Here it comes…THAT day. Valentine’s Day! For weeks, we have seen stores covered in red and pink hearts, cute stuffed animals, endless boxes of chocolates and red, pink and white roses. There are Valentine’s Day cards for everyone from your boss to your pet. We just can’t miss this day of hearts, flowers, and love, right?
For my husband and me, this year on February 14, it is our 44th wedding anniversary, so it truly is a day to celebrate for us. When our kids were growing up, I would make a big deal with pink pancakes to love notes in their lunches, heart boxes of cheap chocolates and fun stuffed animals. It was schmaltzy, but I was one of THOSE moms.
As I began to minister to single parent families, I realized that there was another side to Valentine’s Day. Their marriages and families had been shattered and the question about what love really means began to raise its ugly head. The concept of vows and commitment came into question, and unconditional love didn’t apply anymore.
During this time, our own kids were grown and gone, so I began to focus on our single parents and their kids, by having our own Valentine’s Day celebrations. We made cute crafts, played fun games, talked about the love of Jesus and tried to help them make positive memories even though their hearts had been broken.
There are millions upon millions of people who dread Valentine’s Day because either they are alone or because their relationships are anything but “happy”. They try to stay out of the sea of red and pink, and try to ignore this upcoming day of inward pain and loneliness.
Love is so subjective to our experience, isn’t it? Think about it. Have you ever felt truly completely loved and accepted? Millions of us have and millions of us have not. Do you FEEL the love that God has for you or do you merely know about it?
This Valentine’s Day may be a good day to begin to look into God’s Word and truly absorb how much HE loves you. He made you. He knows you. He treasures you. He sees you and His love is that unconditional love we all want in life. Go buy a little journal at the dollar store and begin to explore His Word and write down every verse that talks about His love because His love is for YOU today and right now and it always has been.
“I will praise You, O Lord my God, with ALL my heart; I will glorify Your name forever, for great is Your love toward me…” Ps. 86:12,13
HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY, IN THE NAME OF JESUS!