What have you done for me lately?

It’s Valentine’s Day. A day when, if you believe the ads, love is measured by the size of the floral bouquet or the box of chocolates or the number of diamonds in a necklace. It is, if you believe all the jokes, a day when men rush to buy a belated present, which women then use to determine just how much he loves her. Listening to the hype, if you don’t celebrate Valentine’s Day right, your relationship is doomed.

We laugh at the extreme message, but how much do we use this standard when “judging” love? Does your loved one say “I love you” enough and at the most appropriate times? Does he or she know exactly what you’re thinking, without you even having to say it? Do your kids behave perfectly and never embarrass you?

We know that’s not the right way to look at our loving relationships. And most of us don’t look at our husbands, wives, kids, significant others in that way. But are we looking at God and His relationship with us that way? When I’m struggling, I’m all too prone to ask God “why me?!” than to trust in His loving mercy. It’s really easy to say “do something for me” than to remember all He has already done.

Love is a great thing to celebrate. But it’s more than flowers and candy and it surely deserves more than one day a year. I think I’ll just take this day as a good reminder to live in love – and enjoy the potato chips my husband got me for Valentine’s.

How do you celebrate love? Click on comments below to share.

Emmanuel - our God is with us!

Pastor Steve has been teaching a series on the gift we need at Christmas. Jesus came as that gift – God’s love, joy, and peace all wrapped up in one unexpected package. No one of that day thought of a baby as the Messiah, the Promised One who would save them from the world. The thing the Jews of the day didn’t realize was that they themselves were part of the world they need to be saved from!

We often don’t realize our need for this gift today either. God’s perfect love, to cast out all fear, give us heavenly peace and deep-rooted joy no matter what our circumstances. We’ll say we want this gift – but too often we want to pick and choose how the gift impacts our lives.

Think about this name of God – Emmanuel, God with us – as you celebrate with family and friends this week. What does it mean in your life to have God with you? How does that (or should that) change you? Let God, the giver of all good things, present you with the gift you need today. Accept His wondrous gift of love, Jesus Christ.

Merry Christmas!

By the way best wishes to the newly married Rachael and Clint – Pastor Steve and Jane have gained a new son. It was delightful celebration of love in this most loving season. God bless!