Valentine's Day

It has been a couple of weeks here at college back from break, and I can tell you that I am so blessed by this place, beyond my own understanding. Just the connections I have made through Christ and the friendships I have made really have built me up and made me want to go deeper in my faith than ever before. I praise the Lord for that, but as we all know Valentine's Day is tomorrow. The one day out of the year where boyfriends/husbands pull out extravagant ends in order to express their love for their significant others and where the world treats their spouses or significant others with so much love that it overflows from that person. I am not going to lie to you. I love Valentine's day and what it represents as a holiday which celebrates love in our lives, but I think that especially in relationships we think that this day is the only day that we need to love and pamper and respect with nothing in return. This post is about taking the concept of what Valentine's Day represents and bringing that into your everyday life.

So let's start this post out with exactly what love is in the first place. If we define what love is, and then figure out what it is in our lives then we will be able to apply that concept not only to the day dedicated to it tomorrow, but to our entire life!

In 1 John 3:16 it states the following about love: "This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters." This just explains the love that we ought to have for everyone in our lives, so when you hear the word "love" you should think about Jesus and what he did to show that love to us. I mean think about the phrase in that verse where it says: "...we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters." Just think about that. Apply it to your lives. Apply it to your relationships. It doesn't mean that you are going to die for that person. (Okay that might be what you get out of it, but I get a little bit of an abstract meaning.) I think that is saying that we need to lay down our selfish ways of thinking. I mean think about this for a moment. You are in a relationship, and even though you are with that person and made a commitment to them. They just don't seem that invested in it, and choose not to give up anything in order to see you, or they choose their friends over you, or a sport. Even though you are in a committed relationship, they don't really commit themselves to you. Now flip that around. Think about if they loved you like Jesus loved us. Think about if they laid down themselves for you. Think about how amazing that would feel. That is love people. Right there. That is what we are called to be in our lives.

You now have been schooled about what V-Day is about, but why has society overemphasized this one day as the only important day in a relationships stand point? Besides an anniversary this is the only day that most guys are willing to lay down their own pride and love unconditionally. I just ask this question. What about if we lived everyday like it was Valentine's Day? What if we loved our significant others unconditionally every single day of the year? What if we loved every single person that we came in contact with as Christ loved us? Wouldn't that love just be amazing? I think it would be. I just challenge you all to not just pick tomorrow as your day to love, but take the Agape Love that you experience tomorrow and continue it through everyday of your relationships with others.

Papa. I just come to you tonight with a humble heart. I am just completely engulfed in your love, and just want everyone to feel like this Lord. I am eternally thankful for what you have done in my life, and have taught me about the love you have for us. I just pray tonight that we all can take this to heart. That unconditional love cannot be boxed or bottled up into just one day a year, but it has free reign in every single day of our lives! I come to you tonight asking that we be changed by the love you pour into us, and that we may pour this love that we feel into others everyday. No matter who they are or where they are in their walks with you. No matter if they are our spouses or significant other or if they are a friend or family or just a complete stranger or enemy. That we can express the amazing love that you displayed to us on that hunk of tree when your Son sacrificed himself for us out of that love. I say all these things in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ who died and rose again to show us the kind of love that we should not only love on this Valentine's day, but in everyday and everything we do. Amen.