Gift of love

This past Saturday our men at church gave the women an awesome gift.

Not flowers…

Nor jewelry…

Not candy for Valentines Day.

 

They cooked a meal for us. It’s called our Sweetheart Supper and they’ve done this annually for more than 25 years. We have steak or chicken, baked potato, a fantastic salad bar AND hot fudge brownie sundae. Mmmmmmmmm!

 

 

They serve us and…

Wait for it…

They wash the dishes!

 

We love it!

 

This is truly a gift of love. It’s a sacrifice for the men–a LOT of work–but they do it because they love us. It’s wonderful to get a card, flowers and candy for Valentine’s Day and I don’t want to trivialize the importance of giving and receiving such nice gifts. But, when so many make a sacrifice of hours and hours of labor–planning, buying groceries, cooking, serving and cleaning–somehow that is even more meaningful than the typical gifts we share on Valentine’s Day.

We feel the love.

But, we know someone who loves us more.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16

 

Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. John 15:13

This special someone sacrificed a great deal more than we can even imagine.

I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me–just as the Father knows me and I know the Father–and I lay down my life for the sheep.” John 10:14-15

This task wasn’t easy–it was humiliating and painful. His friends and disciples deserted him. He carried His cross alone. Jesus our Lord, Son of God, took on the appearance of a human so that by His sacrifice, we might live.

 

Who, being in the very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death–even death on a cross! Philippians 2:6-8

Valentine’s Day is a day to celebrate our love for others–our spouse or significant other, our children and parents. I pray you will enjoy this time with your family and are blessed by the love you share on February 14.

And, on every day, I pray you will remember, recognize and spread the word of God’s great love for us, as shown through the greatest gift of love–Jesus our Lord.