Valentine

You’ve read it and you’ve passed it on: the candy conversation heart. It’s like the fortune cookie of love. Pick up a heart, read the saying, and pass it on. What will you tell your Valentine? “Purr fect, call me, cutie pie, new love, my love, UR kind, love bird, smile, lover boy, or be mine.” You wonder who to give a heart to, and ask yourself, who will give one to me?  What will it say? Will you be my Valentine?

The great thing about conversation hearts is that you can choose what saying to give to which person.  The bad thing about a conversation heart is that it is disposable: Temporary promises from a would-be Valentine.

There is someone who loves you, totally and unconditionally; someone whose love has been demonstrated and passed the test of time. Someone who keeps every promise, sees every tear, and knows every hurt. The invitation to be loved by Him is personal. The invitation is just for you. “For God so loved the world, that He gave His one and only son, so that whoever believes in Him would not perish, but have everlasting life.” 

Unconditional love, reaching down, saying to you, “Let me be your Valentine”.

Going Organic

When it comes to eating, I don’t really buy into fads. You could definitely say that I am not “organic”. I like chocolate, coffee, fried food, fast food and cookies.  I eat a lot of chicken and salad. I am not dairy or gluten free. I don’t like green beans, lamb, tomatoes, or legumes. I believe that all things can be eaten in moderation. I want my family to eat healthy, but I guess when it comes down to it I think that a little bit of preservatives are probably okay.  Preservatives and other additives are used in our foods to make things stay fresh longer, or to give a forced appearance of health and vibrancy.

Are you plumping up your spiritual life with preservatives? Do you know how to make your life look great without really living authentically for Jesus? We can fill our days with Bible study, church, service work and ministry. We can dress up and come to church with perfect hair and clothes and still be decaying on the inside.

I think in my spiritual life it may be time to go organic.  Organic is defined as something that “occurs or develops gradually and naturally without being forced or contrived”.  God wants us to worship him and serve him with our whole hearts. He wants us first on the inside and then on the outside.  He is not impressed by the performance we put on for the world and even sometimes for ourselves; He is concerned about the condition of our hearts.

Are you organic? Is your relationship with Him something that occurs naturally without being forced or contrived?  I love that the definition for organic includes the fact that this organic something “develops gradually”.  We will not become spiritually rich and deep people overnight. There is no preservative we can take that will cause this lasting transformation, it will naturally occur over the span of a lifetime spent with God. 

How is this sort of organic relationship with God possible? As believers we are each indwelt by the Holy Spirit the moment we become children of God. The Holy Spirit is at work in our lives every day whether we acknowledge his presence or not.  The bible tells us that the Holy Spirit “gives birth to spiritual life” (John 3:6), is sent as an “advocate from the Father”, to teach us everything and remind us of everything we have been told (John 14:26), and that “the Holy Spirit leads into all truth” (John 14: 17) Allowing the Holy Spirit to work through us as we take time to immerse ourselves in the Word of God, pray, and experience times of refreshment with other believers, are all ways we grow in our relationship with God.

Let’s go organic!