A New Twist on Valentine’s Day

Each year I hear people bemoaning Valentine’s Day (aka Single Awareness Day). Some feel jipped because they don’t have anyone special with whom to celebrate. Others are grieving the loss of their Valentine to either death or to break up. The sad truth is that for millions of people, Valentine’s Day is a day of great sadness and disappointment.

My question is “Why?” How did we get to a place where it is not only culturally acceptable, but culturally expected to elevate romantic love to a status above all other forms of love? Culture teaches that romantic love is to be sought after above all else.

What if instead of focusing on our relational status on Valentine’s Day, we looked for practical ways to show love to others. A widow recently shared with a group of us how tough Valentine’s Day is for her because her husband always spoiled her…my heart hurt at her declaration. To my surprise, not one, not two, but several of the people with me that day were moved to action. They sought out practical ways to express love to this precious woman on Valentine’s Day.

Can you imagine the difference we could make if we were intentional about blessing others on Valentine’s Day? I’m not suggesting couples neglect each other, but I am suggesting that instead of being self-focused we become other-aware.  Will you make a commitment today to be a blessing to some unsuspecting person next year on Valentine’s Day?