If I'm being perfectly honest, I'm not a big fan of Valentine's Day. It just feels artificial and commercial to me. I don't want anyone to tell me they love me on February 14th if they wouldn't say the same thing on the other 364 days father year! Yes, I'm a Valentine Scrooge!
I am, however, a fan of love. In fact, my favorite bible verse is 1 Corinthians 13:4-6: Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. So, the one thing I do like about Valentine's Day is that it serves as a reminder of how we should love others and express that love EVERY DAY! The bible certainly has plenty to say about love, so Valentine's Day is great time to explore some of those scriptures and remind ourselves (and others) to love the way Jesus loved.
A few years ago, I used Valentine's day as a opportunity to encourage a devotional practice for families in our congregation. It was a big hit and I have done some version of it every year since then. This year, I have created a single sheet that I will hand out during the children's sermon on February 3. That means families will have 12 days to use the devotional leading up to Valentine's Day. It is based on the idea of conversations hearts. There are twelve hearts on the sheet, each with a "typical" saying and a scripture that refers to love. The instructions are simply to pick one heart each of the twelve days, look up the verse together, and discuss the questions listed on the sheet.
I'm excited to give these out to the families in our congregation and I wanted to share it with others as well, so I have made it available as a free download. Just click the link below the image of the sheet to download the document. Then, you are welcome to print as many as you wish. I just ask that you leave the "created by . . " line at the bottom of the sheet. Consider it my gift of love to all of you! 💖
If you use it, I would love for you to come back here and leave me a comment about how it worked or how you used it!
Happy Valentine's Day!
