Today is Valentine's Day. The past few years, my Valentine's Day has gone something like this: I endure weeks of being reminded by the signs and chocolates and flowers in the shop windows of just how single I am, and then sequester myself in my room or somewhere in town with my other single girlfriends on February 14th, trying to ignore all of the romantic stories of what my friends' significant others did for their Valentine. It is wearisome, it is tiring, and it is lonely. America is not a good place to be an insecure single on February 14th.
But this year, I thought, it would be different. Koreans don't really celebrate Valentine's Day, so aside from a few random signs scattered across the city, and the plans of my American plans who simply cannot live without celebrating the big day, even from the other side of the world, I have not really been reminded at all that Valentine's Day was even coming. I had hoped that it would come and go, sliding by without even being noticed, without even entering my consciousness.
But that is not, in the end, what actually happened. I woke up this morning with the first thought in my mind being that today is February 14th - the day that couples celebrate their love. But it was not accompanied with the usual feelings of loneliness and isolation. Instead, this year, I realized just how many valentines I have in my life. If a "valentine" is someone whom you care for and want to show your affection to, then I am truly blessed, indeed. I have so many people in my for whom I would do almost anything - and who I know would do the same for me.
Without even meaning to, I found myself this morning reflecting on how grateful I am to be single. I don't have to stress about buying that "perfect gift." I don't have to take time out of my hectic class and work schedule to do something special with my boyfriend. I have time to spend the day reflecting on and showing my appreciation for the friends that I love, rather than ignoring them for the boy that I love.
I know that this may all sound rather selfish. But that is not the point. When one day I eventually enter into a relationship, I have no doubt that I will willingly pour myself out to do things for him. But the point is this: right now, while I am not in a relationship, I am just as capable of being happy and complete as I would be with a boyfriend or a fiance or a husband. Don't let your relationship status define who you are. Stop asking God to send you "the one," and start asking Him to make you "the one" - the kind of person whom your future spouse would want to be with.
Trust in the Lord, trust in His timing, trust in His plan. The Bible says that those who do that will be like a tree planted by water, whose leaves are green even through searing heat. I don't know about you, but to me, that says that people who put their faith in God will bloom and prosper, no matter what happens to them. That's a Valentine's Day gift worth bragging about. So this February 14th, write God a love letter. He is the true lover of your soul - and He will always have something wonderful for you. You don't even have to wait until February to receive it :).
But this year, I thought, it would be different. Koreans don't really celebrate Valentine's Day, so aside from a few random signs scattered across the city, and the plans of my American plans who simply cannot live without celebrating the big day, even from the other side of the world, I have not really been reminded at all that Valentine's Day was even coming. I had hoped that it would come and go, sliding by without even being noticed, without even entering my consciousness.
But that is not, in the end, what actually happened. I woke up this morning with the first thought in my mind being that today is February 14th - the day that couples celebrate their love. But it was not accompanied with the usual feelings of loneliness and isolation. Instead, this year, I realized just how many valentines I have in my life. If a "valentine" is someone whom you care for and want to show your affection to, then I am truly blessed, indeed. I have so many people in my for whom I would do almost anything - and who I know would do the same for me.
Without even meaning to, I found myself this morning reflecting on how grateful I am to be single. I don't have to stress about buying that "perfect gift." I don't have to take time out of my hectic class and work schedule to do something special with my boyfriend. I have time to spend the day reflecting on and showing my appreciation for the friends that I love, rather than ignoring them for the boy that I love.
I know that this may all sound rather selfish. But that is not the point. When one day I eventually enter into a relationship, I have no doubt that I will willingly pour myself out to do things for him. But the point is this: right now, while I am not in a relationship, I am just as capable of being happy and complete as I would be with a boyfriend or a fiance or a husband. Don't let your relationship status define who you are. Stop asking God to send you "the one," and start asking Him to make you "the one" - the kind of person whom your future spouse would want to be with.
Trust in the Lord, trust in His timing, trust in His plan. The Bible says that those who do that will be like a tree planted by water, whose leaves are green even through searing heat. I don't know about you, but to me, that says that people who put their faith in God will bloom and prosper, no matter what happens to them. That's a Valentine's Day gift worth bragging about. So this February 14th, write God a love letter. He is the true lover of your soul - and He will always have something wonderful for you. You don't even have to wait until February to receive it :).
Jeremiah 17:7-8
7 “But blessed is the one who trusts in the LORD,
whose confidence is in him.
8 They will be like a tree planted by the water
that sends out its roots by the stream.
It does not fear when heat comes;
its leaves are always green.
It has no worries in a year of drought
and never fails to bear fruit.”
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