The second month of the year has always been reserved in honour of St Valentine, and is globally celebrated as the month of love. I find it fascinating that the commercialization of "love" has become so cheap, since we are really only expected to "show" our love and appreciation of those closest to us on birthdays, Christmas, and, for the special "love" in our life, also Valentines. I call it cheap in light of the fact that we've been called to live out our love in the same manner that God lives His!
Enter the greatest revolutionary that ever lived - Jesus Christ. The historical context into which He stepped was one seeped in tradition and vigorous religion. The theologians of the day had made so many rules and regulations that it made normal living a near impossibility. And here comes Jesus and accuses them of making the rules so difficult, and of expecting people to follow them while they themselves couldn't even keep it! Jesus even goes so far as to intimate that they've literally killed off a living relationship with God by introducing so many rules that their lives (and the lives of their followers) eventually was no better than white-washed graves. But Christ was the Great Forgiveness, and so He offers all of humanity a way out of tradition, religion, rules, regulations and conformity. The offer was simple: love God, love others and love yourself. Not some of the time, but all of the time, constantly and consistently. In the face of love all Law is made perfect, all rules are simply lifestyle and regulations are determined by grace.
How can one effectively commercialize this type of living? In fact, is it at all possible? We bandy the word "love" around so flippantly it often loses its essence. "I love my new car," or "I love my new dress," is just so... banal in the light of "God Is Love." Love is the Source of life, its essence, its meaning and its goal. If our very nature, our most intimate characteristics are created and lived out in life, what a rich source of diverse expressions we will experience! Talk about biodiversity. Look at a sunset, a Yellowwood tree, crashing waves or a Highveld thunderstorm and you will experience some aspect of the diversity of Love.
Each person will get a choice of what to do with the chemistry of love that plays out in our daily lives: Do we choose to live by feeling alone or do we live according to the Image after which we were created? In other words, are we living for the moment and the situation, or are we living in the hope of potential realized?
Is this not what true vision amounts to? To have the hope of invested potential realized. It is to touch the Unseen, it is to proof the Uncreated, and it is the evidence of Eternity locked up in our soul. There can be only one true Valentine for me! How about you?
