A Valentine from God

John 3:16 (New King James Version).

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

In 1965 I was an aspiring third grader at Ivanhoe Elementary School. I was aspiring with the goal of making it to the fourth grade in order to get away from old Miss Rash. She made us do dumb things as boys. She would make us learn to do some kind of old dance with the girls and stuff like that. Then on Valentine’s Day, we had to give out Valentines. My parents would buy me a bag of them from Prices Store which had about fifty in it. I hated to go through them and pick which one I would give to whom. It just did not seem right to have to give another boy a valentine. I would pick one with a football on it or something to keep the masculine image intact. Now it was not an issue when it came to the girls. Girls liked to get valentines. No football cards for them, only the cute little hearts or puppy dogs. I finally got out of the third grade only to have old Miss Rash move up to the fourth.

Over a billion Valentine cards will be sent over the next few days making it the second most card sending holiday. Christmas of course is number one in this country. We have come to assimilate the day with love. Flowers, candy, and jewelry are commonly given to our sweethearts in our attempts to express our love for them, and oh yes, the valentine card. I could not find one with Southern lingo to express my feelings. You know, something like, “You have got the softest hide I ever felt.” I might be a redneck.

When it comes to expressing love it has never been done better than how God did it. For Him to take upon Himself the body of a human and sacrifice that body in order that He might show me how much He loves me just blows me away. It is not only to be interpreted that once He so loved the world that He did that, but rather He still so loves us. One sacrifice, one time, for one and all. What would God say in His Valentine to you? I love you. Not that you are sweet or pretty, handsome or smart. Not that you have soft hide or a cute smile. No, His Valentine simply says, “I love you.” Jesus said I love you this much as He stretched out His arms and died. This Valentine’s Day give your heart to Jesus.