Friday ....

Knit your hearts with an unslipping knot.

                                                 - -Shakespeare 

For as long as i can remember, Valentine's Day has had a romantic connotation associated with it.  When you read of its origin and the history surrounding St. Valentine you come to understand that this man was held in high regard by those around him as one who had compassion on young couples.  The commercialism, however, has taken much of the true sentiment away from the "holiday" and often distorts the sincere and simple message that such a day should actual commemorate. Love is so much MORE than romance .... Love is so much MORE than the emotional stirrings of the heart ....

The very 1st Valentine was sent almost 2,000 years ago when God, the Father, sent His One and Only Son to be a Sacrifice so that my heart would forever be His!

This is how much God loved the world:  He gave His Son, His one and only Son.  And this is why:  so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in Him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life.  God didn't go to all the trouble of sending His Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was.  He came to help, to put the world right again.  Anyone who trust in Him is acquitted;  anyone who refuses to trust Him has long since been under the death sentence without knowing it.  And why? Because of that person's failure to believe in the one-of-a-kind Son of God when introduced to Him.  (John 3:16)

True Love is sacrificial .... True Love grows when the Giver is more concerned for another's wellbeing rather than their own.  True Love is forever looking OUTward rather than consumed with personal, selfish gain.  True Love restores.  True Love forgives.  True Love is a commitment of perseverance and endurance and celebration AND sentiment.  True love is a partnership of compliments and courtesy, correction and concern, joy and jubilation, daily journeys and lifetime lessons.  True love inspires and insulates. 

True love grows among couples, no doubt.  But the gift of friendship and the love that stems from a kinship when 2 little girls meet on the playground in 3rd grade is a hard bond to dismiss.  The kindred spirits that unite, oh so strongly, during high school - - proms and pep rallies, club meetings and football games, Sunday School, church camp and choir tour - - That's the Love that lets you call them at 3 in the morning, despite the passage of time and the many miles in between, and ask them to pray for you.  Or just call to check on them and remind them of their significance and worth in your life . . . 40 years later!  STILL !!!!!  For girls, it's the giggles!  and i'm so grateful to report, that despite the passage of time, the gray hair and the wrinkles that just seemed to pop up from who-knows-where, those giggles still remain ... a happy heart does good, like a medicine!

Just as David and Jonathan were loyal friends, who demonstrated a sacrificial love for one another, who lived a life of compromise with regard to the other's well being, i believe that the Lord brings those friends into our path today.  For seasons ... for celebrations .... for reminders that He Loves Us and desires to bring out the best in each of us through His many gifts .... including our friends.

So ..... grab your needles, your crochet hook and knit or crochet some hearts for those you love!  Celebrate this Valentine's Day with a Thank You card for the True Friends in your life ..... whether they are the Best Friends of Right Now ... or have had an impact in who you have become .....

True love emulates ... True Love mentors .... True Love renews and restores .... and our True Love should be based on and shared with our First Love ... our Heavenly Father ...

We love Him, because He FIRST loved us!