by Lavinia
Oh goodness, do you smell the roses? Or the sickly
sweet odor of perfume/cologne mingled with anxiety? Or even the melting
chocolate hiding in half-crumpled boxes tucked away in corners?
Yeah, it’s February, and we all know what that means.
(For us ardent chocolate lovers, it means sales soon.) But for everyone else, it
means Valentine’s Day! And in turn for much of the teenage demographic,
Valentine’s Day means either lots of embraces and tender smooches, or (yikes) forever
alone.
It can be difficult to accept the “Wait. I don’t have
a significant other, (and most of my friends do; is there something wrong with me?)”
feeling—just take it from yours truly. Trust me; they just come at the worst times
too! When the bouts of insecurity hit, stop and remember what the Lord says. He
tells us in His Word that you are special, you are here for a bigger reason,
and he loves you just as you are.
The Bible gives us some great examples. Take Ruth: she
was young and widowed, and chose to take care of her widowed mother-in-law
instead of flaunting her youthful life. Ruth loved Naomi so much that she left
her homeland of Moab and the worship of her many gods to dedicate herself to Naomi
and her God. The bond and love that Ruth and Naomi shared was more important to
Ruth than trying to find another husband.
Ruth 1:16 NIV But Ruth replied, “Don’t urge me to
leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go
I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and
your God my God. 17 Where you die
I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord deal with me, be it ever so severely,
if even death separates you and me.”
More than understanding her duties as a servant of the
Lord, Ruth looked after Naomi because she loved her as a mother figure. Later,
God would repay Ruth for her uprightness, and provide for her a wonderful new
husband in Boaz, a kind and caring man and give her a son named Obed that is directly
linked to the lineage of Jesus Christ.
Maybe this
Valentine’s Day, instead of being selfish, we can learn what true love means—to
care for those we love, and to care for those who need love. We should love
others because God loved us first.
In some deep corner of our minds, we
have all speculated whether or not we are actually loved or wanted. God answers
this as well. He says that each of us was “fearfully and wonderfully made”
(Psalm 139:14). Don’t hate me for the cliché, but we really don’t need others
to prove our worth, because God has already determined that, and we are all
held as His children in His eyes. There is nothing wrong with you or me just
because we don’t have a man. And honestly, the diluted and decrepit love of
this commercialized era is often just lust hidden in a gilded shell; true love
lasts and grows more intense as time goes on. Think about Jesus Christ’s incredible
love for each and every one of us, love that allowed him to die for our sins.
Now that’s love.
So instead of wallowing in self-pity
this Valentine’s Day if we feel inferior to those who were never superior in
the first place, let’s get out and remember God’s love for us. Let’s go out and
share this love with others who need it. Here are some suggestions!
DO SOMETHING SWEET:
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-Valentine’s
Cards for veterans or troops overseas; thank them and remind them how much
God loves them
-Visit a
senior home! Lots of activities to do there
-Volunteer
somewhere else. Share the love
-Make
Valentine’s Cards for charities
-Continuation of the above idea: Sell
cards/candy to raise money for a charity
-Write
out letters (or cards, or maybe attach some treats too!) to those you love:
your family, your friends, or maybe your significant other. Tell them how
much you love them, reminding them that true love is so different from the
commercialized “love” of the era.
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