It might surprise some to know that one of my favorite holidays is actually Valentine’s Day. I’m not typically a mushy, gushy, love person, but I have come to adore the day that some call silly, commercial, and superficial. Which makes me scratch my head because…Christmas. I mean come on people. Commercial much? 

I’ve seen the sentiment everywhere in the last few weeks. In three words, “Valentine’s Day Sucks.” More specifically though, couples exchanging cards in the card aisle, only to put them back. People stating their years married by the fact that they no longer care about Valentine’s Day. Even husband and wife celebrating the fact they got each other nothing “for real” this year. I’ll admit I smiled at saving the $10 on cards and I thought the meme was clever. However, it still made me a little bit sad.

I’m brought back to the verse “We love because he first loved us.” I’m brought to the reality that I am loved by a God who loves like a hurricane. A God who loved me so very much to send His own Son for my soul. A God who then was gracious enough to send me a man who loves me unconditionally. A man who committed his life to me and mine to his. Sure, we have our very own anniversary to celebrate that commitment. But, it doesn’t hurt one bit to have another day of the year where we take a minute to reflect and show each other a little extra love.

And then. And then he sent me a little girl and another babe on the way. Holy chocolate covered strawberry! So {berry} much love! Sorry. I couldn’t help it. 

It doesn’t have to be roses, or chocolate, diamonds, or teddy bears. No, I’ve always believed love is a verb. I try to show him love everyday. We all know though, that gets tough. Some days, we barely get out saying “Thanks” for taking out the trash. We have all read more than once that many marriages end because the couple stopped making the effort. So while we scoff at the day that puts an emphasis on the effort, I can’t help but wonder what that says about our marriage culture.

And for our children, Valentine’s Day doesn’t have to be about the sugar high. No, I take the opportunity to show our girl she is so adored by us. That she is worthy of love and to teach her about God’s love. I value showing her the commitment and effort her parents make. For we are her first examples of marriage and relationships. 

I’m here to say this. It’s OK to put the effort in. It’s OK to like the flowers that are sent to your office. It’s OK to go out to dinner. Or stay in and order pizza. It’s perfectly fine to buy the corny card or the boxers with the hearts on them. The world is crying out for more love. We all say it. We all feel it. So lets actually show the love.

Valentine’s Day is fun. It’s about the love you share all year, with all the people in your life. Brotherly, sisterly, dating, marital, friendship. So find that someone you love and fill up their cup! Let yours be filled without thinking it’s stupid. Remember- “We love because He first loved us.” Isn’t that something to celebrate? I think it is.

So don’t mind me over here with my handmade cards complete with silly tag lines and my heart shaped brownies made just for my man. I got my little girl some sparkly nail polish with her name on it and we plan to cook a nice steak dinner for our favorite guy to enjoy when he gets home. We are doing Valentine’s Day and we are doing it our way. For the love of love.