Valentine’s Day is just a day. It’s February 14th every year. It has 24 hours in it.

The sun rises at the start of it and the sunsets at the end. We eat. We drink. We go about our lives. Valentine’s Day is just a day.

The ‘day of love’ has passed us by yet again and still, there is something deeply ingrained in our concept of this day that leaves quite a lot of us feeling a little more ‘lovey dovey’ than usual. Although it’s not something I necessarily go out of my way to celebrate - buying the stuffed teddies or the heart shaped chocolates - I do like the excuse to dish out extra ‘love’ or encouragement on this day each year. I also love the little extra push to dip my toes in what the Bible says about love. Don’t get me wrong, we can and should look at this concept in the Word all the time (and it’s everywhere in there, you won’t have to look far!), but I find that often Valentine’s Day is the perfect opportunity to sit with more patience and an open heart in those places.

So this month, regardless of what calendar date you find yourself reading this on, I want to share three of my favorite passages around love - grab a cup of something yummy and maybe a leftover heart-shaped cookie and open up your Bible with me.

1 Corinthians 16:14 (The Voice) - “Let love prevail in your life, words, and actions.”

Let that sink in for just a moment. No, this is not usually a Bible verse used at weddings, but it is one that should be in our hearts and minds each day. It’s one of those verses that speaks about a love that is constant, not reserved for special occasions, like Valentine’s Day. See how it says “life, words, and actions” - well, there isn’t much left after that! That literally covers our every day, all day living. How we go about our lives; what we say, who we say it to and what we do in the midst of all that. Love should be covering all of that at all times - that’s what prevail means. Love should win in our daily living every time.

Romans 5:8 (The Voice) - But think about this: while we were wasting our lives in sin, God revealed His powerful love to us in a tangible display—the Anointed One died for us.”

Now if this doesn’t get you feeling some big feelings, I don’t know what will! Consider the wording in The Voice translation of this verse - “while we were wasting our lives” - while we were actively sinning on purpose against the One who created us, God decides to be bigger than all that and display His incredible love in such a way that would floor us. Floor us so much, that we’re down on our knees, ugly crying and trying to reconcile what this even means. 

When my 5 year old does something against my wishes, and on purpose nonetheless, I have to be honest - my first response is not to dish out obvious displays of love to her. My first response is to get grumpy - to tell her off, to call her out on her disobedience and try to make the situation right. God however, sends Love. He sends us His Son to cover over all of our disobedience with the deepest and greatest love we’ll ever know. Now that’s some serious parenting!

Proverbs 17:17 (The Voice - brackets my own): “A true friend loves regardless of the situation,

    and a real brother (or sister!) exists to share the tough times.”

This verse holds one of the greatest challenges for us as we seek to love those in our worlds - it says “regardless of the situation” in The Voice translation. That means, we should be loving our friends and neighbours at all times even when that’s tough. Your best friend cheated on an exam? Love them anyway. Your brother dented the front of your car? Love him anyway. Your next door neighbour plays music really loud late at night? Love them still. Yes, those are hard moments. Yes, love might not be the first response we have for these people - hey, it might not even be the second or third response we have - but it still needs to happen. God tells us to love, regardless of what is happening. It doesn’t mean we have to condone the situation, but it does mean that if we approach it from the point of view of loving that other person as God loves us (and remember, we aren’t perfect either!), then the likelihood of being able to stand with them and move through that situation in a God-honouring manner is greater. 

So, Valentine’s Day has come and gone again. You might have been reading this article hoping for some tips on how to spoil that special someone with Bible verses dripping in candy hearts, but instead I’ve challenged you to look differently at what the Bible says about love and the many ways we’re asked to practice it. It’s not something we write in a card once a year or on anniversaries - it’s a physical and tangible reaction that we must choose while we live in a broken world often lacking love. Each of the verses I’ve shared above holds something for you to do as you love - let it win in everything you do everyday, acknowledge that your sin is washed away by God’s great gift of His Son, and love those around you even when that seems like a ridiculous response.

There’s nothing wrong with enjoying a heart shaped chocolate from someone special of course (I do love those jelly centered ones!), but while love is in the air, can I encourage you to dig a little differently into what the Bible says about how to love? Maybe see if there’s a way you can celebrate this ‘day of love’ in a new or unique way in light of what you uncover because you might be surprised at what the Bible has to offer!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

I'm Hannah - mama to two littles and dipping my toes into my next right thing as I learn to navigate this chapter God has called me to. I generally hover in that space between consciousness and coffee as I try to take each day knowing I need grace to get through it. I'm a lover of good words, strong conversation, a well-worn thrift store and a doughy doughnut.