Valentines Day!

Today, as I'm sure you're well aware, is Valentines Day. I've been thinking a lot about this holiday as it approached. Valentines day is basically a holiday of love. But what does that mean? In order to have a holiday devoted to love we really have to understand what love is. So I did some experimenting. I went on yahoo-answers and asked for a definition of love. Here a sampling of the answers I received:

Answer 1. Loving someone means seeking the interest of the other person. Treat him/her as you would want to be treated.


Answer 2. You can ask 100 different people this question, and get 105 different answers...

Love means something different for everyone...

Just be careful of any answers that are purely emotion. If love is only an emotion, then the moment you're mad at someone you no longer love them and that's simply not possible.


Answer 3. Love is God and God is Love....

oh u mean in the human aspect...

well when u take a breath, u can smell them..when u eat..u can taste them..when u think ur thoughts are of them..u see your life as u know it being consumed by them...when u open your eyes u see them..when u look at your hands u see theirs on your or vice versa...when u hear a voice or a wonderful medley u hear them..

Answer 4. A deep, tender, ineffable feeling of affection and solicitude toward a person, such as that arising from kinship, recognition of attractive qualities, or a sense of underlying oneness.
A feeling of intense desire and attraction toward a person with whom one is disposed to make a pair; the emotion of sex and romance.

Sexual passion.
Sexual intercourse.
A love affair.
An intense emotional attachment, as for a pet or treasured object.

if you like someone soo much that you wanna hav him forever then that means your in love..(other cases also there)


Answer 5. Love is priority.

Answer 6. you'll know that feeling of love when you're with someone and it's totally different than anyone else you have been with.

love can't really be defined. it's just a feeling that no one can describe until you're in it. love is special. it's something different to loving your friends and family. loving a boyfriend/girlfriend will come over a period of time. not instantly. don't expect to be in love by 2 weeks of a relationship. love will come to you when you're ready.
i think that if you look for love it won't come to you.

there are different forms of love.
it's a different feeling from anything else.

Answer 7. When you really care about someone. your willing to do anything for that person not matter what. be there

Answer 8. you just know, theres no way to explain or define it, it just happens

It's sad to me that the majority of the answers either basically said, "Love is selfish." or "Love just happens and it can't be defined because it's just emotional warm fuzzies." I mean, I really didn't expect any better. In fact, I was surprised by the few I got that were different. Number 1 and 2 for example were shockers for me. I really didn't expect to see anyone talk about looking to the interests of others or not leaving it to emotions. Those two really don't fit the cultural norm that I thought I would see. And it's sad that I would expect so little, but such is the world we live in.

Okay, so the point of doing that? Well, I was just trying to make a point which will be more evident after examining the Biblical definition of Love. There are tons of verses that talk about Love, but I've been told my posts are always way too long so I'm only going to look at a few. The first being an obvious one to anyone that is at all familiar with the Bible.

1 Corinthians 13:4-8

With this alone, we could come up with a pretty sufficient definition of Love. But there are a few more that we have to look at as well.

1 John 3:16, 18, 4:7-12

Okay, now we really have what we need to define Love. First, we see what love is not. Then what it is.


Love is not envious, boastful, proud, rude, self-seeking, or easily angered. It keeps no record of wrongs, it does not delight in evil, and it never fails. It is not just words, but actions done in truth. It is patient and kind, always trusting, hoping, persevering, and protecting. It rejoices with the truth. Love sacrifices all, even to laying down one's life for a brother.

So now that a proper definition has been established, how can this be applied to the holiday? Well, not by buying candy and roses, that's for sure. It's something more than that. And I'm not really sure yet. This is a very recent way my thoughts have been going. I generally don't think that much about love but because of a couple conversations with a friend I've thought about it more in the last week or so. But yeah, I really don't know how to change the way of looking at this holiday. Just that I think the way Christians celebrate it should differ from the world's way. Any input/ideas/thoughts on the idea would be appreciated. And maybe I'm nuts. Maybe there is nothing wrong with the way the world goes about celebrating 'Love'. I'd love feedback, even if it is just to tell me I'm off my rocker.

Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving! What does that word bring to mind? Turkey and mashed potatoes both covered with gravy. Green beans, stuffing, rolls, and sweet potatoes. And then the amazing pumpkin pie, cooked to perfection with all the right spices, a dollop of whipped cream on top, and to go with it, a mug of steaming coffee or hot chocolate depending on your preference. All the while laughter is filling the air as stories of holidays past are told and retold.

Nothing could beat that picture of thanks giving. Or could it? Is there something even better that could come to mind when the word thanksgiving is spoken? What does the bible say about it?

The bible has many many verses discussing giving thanks. Some are simply commands to give thanks. But there are also those that tell us how, when, where, and why to give thanks.

Give Thanks

Psalms 100:4, Colossians 1:12, Colossians 3:17, Colossians 3:15, Colossians 4:2, Hebrews 12:28

How to Give Thanks

Psalms 28:7, Psalms 105:1, Psalms 147:7, Isaiah 12:4, 2 Corinthians 4:15, Ephesians 5:20

We are to give thanks by making known to the nations what God has done. We are to call on the name of the Lord and sing songs of praise in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Our thanksgiving should overflow.

When to Give Thanks

Psalms 30:12, Psalms 119:62, Ephesians 5:20

We are to give thanks always and forever. This is emphasized Ps. 119:62 where it tells us to give thanks at midnight. If we are commanded to give thanks at midnight we can know that 'always' is literal. We are to give thanks at all times of the day. This might be confusing to some, for how can we always be thanking God and do other things as well? Though we can not be constantly saying thank you, we can be in a constant state of thanksgiving. One void of grumbling and complaining.

Where to Give Thanks

Psalms 95:2, Psalms 100:4, Psalms 35:18, Isaiah 12:4

We are to give thanks while we stand before God. As we enter His gates, and as are in His courts. And while in the great assembly. If we left it there it would seam that as long as we were not at church or worshiping God is some way, we are 'safe'. We don't have to worry about being thankful. That is why Is. 12:4 is so important. It tells us that we must also give thanks where the nations can see us. That means at school, where peer pressure is overwhelming. On the Job, where fellow employees are watching and may well be critical. Anywhere and everywhere we are, we are commanded to give thanks.

Why to Give Thanks

Psalms 7:17, Psalms 75:1, Psalms 106:1, Psalms 107:1, Psalms 107:15, Psalms 107:21, Psalms 107:31, Psalms 118:1, Psalms 118:21, Psalms 118:28, Psalms 118:29, Psalms 119:62, Psalms 136:1, Psalms 136:2, Psalms 136:3, Psalms 136:26, Isaiah 12:4

We should give thanks because we serve a good, righteous God who's unfailing love endures forever. He is our God and his name is near. His laws are righteous. He answers us and has become our salvation. Isaiah 12:4 tells us why by the phrase, "what He has done". Now of course it is impossible to list all that God has done. His works are to numerous for us to count. I would, however, like to highlight a few. Some that are rather obvious and should be enough of a reason to give thanks even without all the rest.

Genesis 1-2:2

God creates life.

Genesis 6-8

God preserves life.

Luke 2:4-7, John 19:30, Matthew 27:57-28:10

God redeemed life.

Those are just three out of many things that God has done to deserve our thanks. But they alone are awe inspiring and should cause us to give thanks. We must remember what He has done. If we forget, we will cease to be thankful.

So what are you going to do this Thanksgiving? Are you going to think about the feast you'll be eating with family and friends? Or will you put yourself in the spirit of giving thanks, reflecting and contemplating what God has done for you. This is the true reason for the holiday. We as Christians have just lost site of it's true meaning and once again allowed the world to influence our outlook on life. Let's start something old and again appreciate this day as it was meant to be appreciated. And when they day is over, don't stop being thankful. We are called to be thankful everyday of the year, at all hours of the day.