The Greatest Valentine.

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With Valentines Day just around the corner, love is certainly in the air. Red and pink have snuck their way into every crevice of the universe and glitter and lace are racing off the shelves. I personally have always been a fan of Valentines Day. I’m sure my affection for the holiday began in kindergarten when we exchanged Power Ranger and Lisa Frank Valentines and got to eat candy by the bucket-full before our parents could tell us “just one.” Since then, I have learned that, to most, Valentines Day means roses, chocolates, wine, smiles, candle-light, and romance.  To me, it just means love-letters. I am a self-proclaimed love-letter addict, so can you blame me for being Valentine’s biggest fan?

            When we are young, the ‘love-letters’ come in the form of simple and mass-produced cards that have a catchy rhyme and a to: and from: spot. Somehow, that was all it took to convince me that a boy really liked me; a generic Star Wars Valentine that said “To: Jill From: Zack. You’re the coolest girl in the galaxy.” That was it! I was hooked on these little suckers! As we grow older, we stop exchanging pre-printed Valentines and start exchanging real words. You see, for someone who so enjoys the art of writing, few things steal my heart like a letter. I wish I weren’t so predictable, but I am. I would read them and re-read them and memorize all the sweet parts that melted my soul. Then I would fold them back up and put them in a box, only to re-read them for years to come.

            The thing is, the way we savor those sweet love-letters is exactly the way we should savor the Bible. We simply should not be able to get enough of His Word. We should have to be torn away from its splendor and reminded to put it down so we can eat and sleep and rest our eyes. Every word dripping with honey, sweet as a lullaby should be constantly dancing around in our thoughts. Like our favorite song that soothes our soul, we should ‘put it on repeat’ as it plucks every heart-string. It should evoke joy, reflection, admiration, change. 774, 746 words from the very mouth of our King; we are so undeserving of this precious gift.

            Sadly, instead of memorizing every word and clutching this book tightly to our chests in amazement that someone loves us as much as this, many of us do a five-minute devotional in the morning, read the Bible verse at the end of it and call ourselves fed. If I had written the love of my life a letter and they continually read one word here and there and sometimes never read it at all, I would be so confused. If you love me, don't you want to know me? Don't you want to know how much I care for you?

            I desire to be absolutely, madly in love with Jesus. I want His words to be like my favorite Valentine. Just the way I saved every note, text, letter, and scrap of paper from my husband…replayed in my head every “I love you,” and every “you’re beautiful,” I want to hold onto every lesson and promise sent to me in this Book from my Savior. Jesus paints the sky for me every morning and hangs a night-light in the sky for me each night. He blessed me with a husband that surpassed my every dream. He soothes my spirit when I’m afraid and heals me when I’m hurt. He chose to entrust me to the greatest parents He has ever created. (Maybe I’m bias…) He planted in me a passion for art and for love and for life. He died for me when I was so lost and so selfish and so blind to His majesty. Have you ever gotten a letter from someone who loved you that much? If you had, I bet you would read it. And read it. And read it again.

            We should be head-over-heels in love with our Father. We should be hanging on His every word. After all, he is the author of the most wonderful Valentine there ever was.

“But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, that even though we were dead in our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead.”

Ephesians 2: 4