Love, Noticed

On noticing the love that has always been there

As Valentine’s Day approaches, I find myself noticing love everywhere.

Not the kind that asks to be proved or performed, but the kind that has quietly shaped me over time.

As I gathered these photo collage images from homes I have lived in and things I have made, I was struck by how often hearts appear. Hearts painted, shaped, placed, and collected. And the more I noticed them, the more I realized they were not accidental. I have always been drawn to hearts, to the desire for others to know they are loved, because I have always known myself to be loved by God.

And then there are the words I return to again and again.
Love.
Beloved.
You are loved.

Scripture tells us that God is love, and that love covers a multitude of sins. Over time, I have come to believe that love is foundational to faith the very ground we stand on.

We fail. People fail us.

Yet God’s love never fails.

As Paul reminds us in 1 Corinthians 13, for now we see only a reflection, as in a mirror. We know only in part. One day, we will see face to face and know fully, even as we are fully known. Faith will become sight, and hope will be fulfilled, and we will behold our God of love face to face.

Until that day, these three remain faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love.

God’s love is lavish and extravagant.
Powerful and sacrificial.
Unconditional and transforming.

This is the love that left heaven to walk among us.
The love that made a way for us to be healed, redeemed, and made whole.
The love that went to the cross, taking upon itself what our sins deserved.
The love that will not let us go.
The love that does not abandon us.

And still, Valentine’s Day can be complicated.

Some are grieving the absence of someone they love.
Some feel unseen or unloved.
Some are going through the motions, buying cards, making reservations, smiling politely while their hearts feel far from full.
Some love this holiday.
Some quietly endure it.

So instead of offering something tidy or sentimental, I offer a prayer.

A Prayer to the God of Love

God of Love,
You see us.
You know us.
You love us fully.

We are fully known by You and unconditionally loved.

Forgive us for the ways we fail to love one another well.
And tend gently to the places in us where love feels difficult to receive.
Heal what has been wounded.
Restore what has been diminished.

Meet those who are missing someone they love.
Meet those who feel unseen or weary.
Meet those who are celebrating and those who are simply surviving.

By Your grace, increase our capacity
to receive Your extravagant and transforming love
and to dispense it freely.

Meet us right where we are, as only You can,
and lead us gently into what is true.

Amen.

Thanks be to God.

Grace meets us where we are and does not leave us there.

Share with someone who might need to be reminded they are seen and loved.