For me Valentine’s Day is a nostalgic time when we focus on the love we have for others, the love of our life and a time beautiful cards with words of eternal love, meals, flowers and chocolate. Those outward signs are supposed to make us feel loved for one day of the year. Wouldn’t it be nice if we skipped all the trappings that go along with this very commercial holiday and focused on the actual sentiment,,

To love someone it isn’t necessary to drown them in things. We already did that a couple months ago at the season of Christmas giving. Instead it should be an every day occurrence where those three little words are part of our ongoing conversation. We all long to be loved. It’s part of our makeup. We come into the world kicking and screaming until we’re cuddled in the arms of loving parents. We proceed through life wanting approval, needing affection and sometimes take the wrong path. Even when we grow old and life has been sapped in various ways, our hearts need a tender touch, a hug, some loving.

God tells us that the greatest gift we have from Him is love. We then have the ability to love others as He first loved us. That precious gift continues to transfer then from one person to another, creating a bond that will go on and on. He is the source of all love. He showed it in His miraculous walk on this planet. He demonstrated it on he cross, when He died to take away he chains of sin. He continues to prove His love every day, by giving us another time of grace to share with others.

So those three little words will be said a lot today. For many they’ll be tucked away tomorrow for another year. For our everlasting God, the love will never die. It lives eternally. Yes, the phrase “I love you,” will be uttered over gourmet meals, boxes of candy and beautiful sentiments, but he phrase, “He rescued me,” is the best Valentine message we could ever receive.