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Cupid’s Busy Bow -- Happy Valentine’s Day #2 (February 14, 2023)

“Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own…” (1 Corinthians 13:4).

“Cupid draw back your bow and let your arrow go straight to my lover’s heart for me,” legendary soul singer Sam Cooke crooned in an early 1960s classic love ballad. Cupid’s arrows will fill the air as heart-to-heart exchanges of romantic affection flow freely this Valentine’s Day. Traditionally, these expressions of love can become quite pricey as many people pamper their loved ones with expensive getaways, dinners, flowers, chocolates, greeting cards, and other special gifts. In a society where discord and strife abound, it is refreshing that this particular day of the year generates such an abundant outpouring of love, especially among couples. Maybe I’m a dreamer, but think of what a much more wonderful and peaceful world it would be if we seized opportunities that arise every day to show in word and deed how much we love and appreciate each other, particularly those with whom we share romantic and family relationships.

Scripture says that life is a vanishing vapor, so each fleeting moment is a precious treasure to be cherished. We never know when a gentle embrace, a tender kiss, a kind word, a good deed, or some other expression of love for another will be our last. A heartfelt daily show of our affection for loved ones need not be costly; it can be effectively accomplished with small sacrifices of our time, encouragement, and other thoughtful little gestures that can make someone’s day or even change their lives. Given the brevity and uncertainty of life, we must take advantage of daily opportunities to love and serve one another as Jesus Christ has loved and served us. With all of our heart, mind, soul, and strength, Christian living is all about loving God and each other. The greatest of virtues, genuine love both demands and merits daily expression! Any and every day of the year it is appropriate to ask cupid to let that arrow go straight to your lover’s heart for you.

“Love…is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails.” (1 Corinthians 13:4-8)

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