Here we are … the week of Valentines.  And the focus for many is aptly LOVE.

Not just romantic love, not just familial love… just plain ol’ loving others, family or not… friend or not… just having a spirit of love towards the rest of humanity… brotherly love.

A few questions to ponder:

• Have you ever received this kind of “out-of-the-blue” love that I speak of?
• Is it easy or difficult for you to love people like this?
• How often do you go out of your to love someone who especially needs it?
• How do you show love?
• Is it easy to accept this kind of love?

Let me be the first one to propose that we DO FOR OTHERS this week instead of feeling sorry for ourselves when we don’t receive the acceptable amount of love from others.

How much better of a day would it be if we thought move of others and less of ourselves?

In fact, mental health care professionals have long suggested that when you’re feeling depressed one of the ways you can take charge of improving your own feelings is by doing something nice for someone else in need.

So instead of whining about how little love (read that “attention”, “gifts”, “consolation”, etc) we received this Valentines … let’s see if we can out-do each other by loving on others.

 

This past weekend I got to go with a bunch of people from church and love on some very important people in our community.  They view themselves as public servants … and they take very good care of us!

We gathered, after baking (or buying), and assembled platters of sweet treats and some thank you cards.  We then delivered those platters of cookies, brownies, bars, Hershey kisses, cinnamon candies and more to the 4 fire houses in San Marcos, to San Marcos City Hall, the Sheriff’s office in San Marcos and Escondido Police & Fire Headquarters.

(This was a repeat of our first event in August 2014… and I would be remiss in not mentioning that this event lives on in honor of the late Trish Smith.  She had an idea to love on our emergency personnel well over 10 years ago and started doing this with a few of her friends in Escondido.  Her church picked up on it and continues the tradition in her honor.  Trish passed away almost a year ago now… we do this partly because of her, and partly because we just love doing it!)

How fun it was to deliver these big ol’ platters of sugary sweets and have a chance to say a big THANK YOU for all they do for the community.  We sure had fun making their day!

Now, it’s your turn…

Here are some other ideas of how to love on others:

• Load up a gift card at the local coffee shop with instructions on how they should use it on random customers.
• Drop a thoughtful card in the mail to a couple of friends you haven’t talked to lately.
• Place a call to your Grandma, or Aunt or Sister or neighbor… the list goes on.
• Take flowers to your neighbor.
• Buy a gas card or grocery card and give it to a family in need.
• Go the extra mile for a loved one in your own home… fold their laundry, wash their dirty dishes, ask them if you can help with anything… again, the list goes on.
• Offer to pick up a friend and go to the beach, or the mountains, or just for a drive.
• Go with a friend to a Dr’s appt.
• Pray for your church members, your pastor, the church staff, the leadership.
• Give someone a hug and ask them how they’re doing.
• … again, the list goes on…

And if you’d like some inspirational tunes, here’s one for you!  Ellie Holcomb, one of my new fav voices, inspires us with her song: LOVE NEVER FAILS

 

LOVE NEVER FAILS, by Ellie Holcomb

Love is patient

Love is kind

Love doesn’t wait to cross over to the other side

Well it’s worth never giving up

It’s worth holding on

Love never fails

And that’s a promise

Love never fails

Help me believe it

 

Help me to trust that this is truth

Help me to love like You do

Oh, Lord help me to live like

Love never fails

 

Love doesn’t strut

It is not proud

Love will make sure to seek others out

Love doesn’t try to keep the score

It sides with forgiveness

 

Love never fails

And that’s a promise

Love never fails

Help me believe it

 

Help me to trust that this is truth

Help me to love like You do

Oh, Lord help me to live like

Love never fails

 

Love has eyes that see your pain

Love will never run away

It holds out hope

It holds out trust

Love will always be enough

 

Love never fails

And that’s a promise

Love never fails

Help me believe it

 

Help me to trust that this is true

Help me to love just like You do

Oh, Lord help me to live like

Love never fails