BE MY VALENTINEWe all want to hear that phrase. It simply means "you are loved." I am here
to tell you that you are loved. God loves you and wants you to be His
Valentine. The love that God gives us is not like the world's love. The
World's love is as sturdy as the paper that most Valentine cards are made
of. God's Love is not a flimsy cheap imitation. It is the real thing. It is
an all giving love that was and is willing to suffer and die for our
deliverance.
Will you be God's Valentine? It is your choice. Say "yes" and return in kind
the love that God first gave you. And when you do, remember the first
Valentine and the way he gave everything, including his life, to the God he
loved.
"Be My Valentine." This is a phrase that conjures up a lot of different
images associated with the celebration of Valentine's Day. Cards with hearts
and little poems on them. Candy and flowers given to someone you love. And
images of cupids flying around shooting their arrows of love into
unsuspecting youths. Young and old alike expressing their affection for
their sweethearts. February 14th for many means cards, candy, flowers, and
cupids.
Our Mothers and Fathers in the Christian Faith would be surprised at what
has become of Valentine's Day. What we call Valentine's Day was at one time
the Feast of St. Valentine. It was a religious holiday. They would be
especially shocked at the use of cupid since he was a character from pagan
mythology. For Christians in the past this holiday was a day to remember and
celebrate the life and death of a Christian martyr.c According to church tradition St. Valentine was a priest near Rome in about
the year 270 A.D. At that time the Roman Emperor was imprisoning Christians
for not worshipping the Roman gods. During this persecution Valentine was
arrested. Some say he was arrested because he was performing Christian
marriages, but others say it was for helping Christians escape prison.
During the trial they asked Valentine what he thought of the Roman gods
Jupiter and Mercury. Of course Valentine said they were false gods and that
the God that Jesus called Father was the only true God. So the Romans threw
him in prison for insulting the gods.
While in prison Valentine continued to minister. He witnessed to the guards.
One of the guards was a good man who had adopted a blind girl. He asked
Valentine if his God could help his daughter. Valentine prayed and the girl
was given her sight. The guard and his whole family, 46 people, believed in
Jesus and were baptized. Because these people had come to know Jesus,
Valentine praised God right there in his prison cell. When the emperor heard
about this he was furious that Valentine was still making converts even in
prison, so he had Valentine beheaded.
Valentine knew that he might get caught in his Christian activities. He knew
that if he told the court the truth about the Roman gods that he would be
thrown in prison. And he knew that if he continued to witness to Christ in
the prison he would make his captors angry. But he continued, because he
loved the Lord and his fellow humans. He was willing to risk his life to
free the prisoners and spread the Good News of Jesus Christ to those who
needed to hear it. |
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