ÜberJoy

The Day of so-called Love

My husband, Pete and I went to our church's Valentine's dinner Friday night. It was really nice. But to be honest, as long as I got to leave the house, I didn’t care if I got to sit in a parked car eating fast food. It was a busy and somewhat difficult day with the kids, to say the least. It is funny to see how our Valentine’s celebrations have changed over the course of 7 years.
My dad always called Valentine’s Day, Amateur day ~ Meaning, the guys that don’t know how to love their significant others all year long have to have an actual scheduled day to show their love. I have always kind of agreed but yet, I sure do like gifts, dinners, flowers, etc. I can always count on these things around Feb.14th from Pete.
Why do I always feel the need to want jewelry and these monumental presents on these worldly scheduled holidays? (Mother’s Day, Birthdays, Christmas, Anniversaries).
If I am honest with myself, the times I feel most loved from Pete is when out of the blue he brings me flowers or tells me what a good mother and wife I am (especially when I am about to lose it) or when he tells me he just wants us to go away and be together for a night all by ourselves. This affirms me and makes me feel loved by him.
I was helping Marschall put together his little Valentine’s Day cards for his friends at his pre-school. I have a vivid memory of first grade delivering out all my little cards on the back of my friend chairs that had a huge heart envelope to put the cards in. I remember digging through mine searching for the one’s from certain friends. I think I needed affirmation back then too. I’m amazed at how I still search to be loved and affirmed. You would think after being married, having kids, my heart would be satisfied.
I know the bigger picture is my heart will never be satisfied depending on my spouse to meet my needs or my children to meet those needs. True love, contentment and peace are when I have my heart and mind focused on Jesus. That’s easier said than done. It seems my heart and mind sure wanders away from Him often.
However, knowing Him intimately, I always feel Him pursuing me. The picture I get is when Pete pursued me in the beginning of our dating relationship. He wanted me, pursued me and accepted who I was. Until we see Jesus face to face, he will ever be pursuing us to Himself in the midst of our chaotic lives and our need for love.
Elisabeth Elliot states “Heaven is not here, it’s there. If we were given all we wanted here, our hearts would settle for this world rather than the next. God is forever luring us up and away from this one, wooing us to Himself and His still invisible Kingdom, where we will certainly find what we so keenly long for.”