Because the truth is, I do need a man. I always have and I always will. I needed him just as much every Valentines I spent single and the one year I didn't.
Yeah, this is truth- even our fullest Valentines are empty if you don't have the One that matters.
Girls (and guys) will complain when they don't have love and fight when people tell them they need it. There seems to be two extremes to the "single Valentine" spectrum and neither is too appealing. So what do we do?
We need to be loved. It's okay. That doesn't make us weak, or sappy, or girly. It makes us human. We are made to be loved, pursued, romanced. And I'm sure us church kids have heard this over and over, so don't tune out on me yet.
There's only One Love worth having. And that Love? He isn't going to leave you. He isn't going to string you along. He isn't going to hurt you- ever.
Jesus, He kneels down and looks in your eyes and says it, over and over. "I love you." He takes your hand in His and promises that yeah, people are coming and going and life is hurting but He's here. He's got you. He's not running out on you, He won't change on you, He won't stop loving you.
He lived for you, He died for you, He bought you, and you're His. That's it. Forever.
And it's okay to let Him love you. I've been there, where you don't want love and as much as you don't want to be alone you're afraid to be anything else. Ann Voskamp said it well when she said,
"The moment you let love into your heart, your heart starts breaking. The only way to stop your heart from breaking is to stop your heart from loving. You always get to choose: either a hard heart or a broken heart."C.S. Lewis knew it when he said, "To love at all is to be vulnerable."
It's the truth, to love is to be open, to let Him in, but let me tell you this, and please try to believe me.
Jesus isn't like them. He isn't like that friend, that guy, that girl, that family member. He knows how fragile your heart is because He made it. He's seen your hurt. He's seen that you're scared, you're bruised, aching. He's not going to take advantage of your vulnerability. He'll be your comfort. Even beyond that, he'll heal you.
Yes, even that heart. The wandering heart. The rebellious heart. The heart that doesn't need Him. The shredded heart. The crushed, stepped on, bleeding heart.
Yes, even your heart. I know someone feels this way, like you've run so far and been so many places you never wanted to be. Like you can never come home because you can't see a way out.
Listen, friend: Jesus will not shrink away from your messy heart. He's not going to leave you in your wreck. The same Jesus that knelt to write in the sand for a woman long abandoned is kneeling now to intercede for you. He'll jump down in that pit with you and not just send you on your merry way, He'll walk alongside you.
I know because I've seen it. I've lived it. Yeah, Jesus jumped down in my messy heart and starting cleaning house. I won't say it didn't hurt but I won't say it wasn't worth it. Because in the beautiful paradox of grace, at the same time that He was ripping out things that had rooted themselves in me, He was holding me in His arms and wiping my tears and whispering His love.
Sometimes love hurts because it won't let you live with poison in your heart. As much as this tearing away is difficult, it can't stay. To leave my pride, my idolatry, even my woes that have gone from hurting to self-pity, would be to let them kill me. So yes, removing cancer isn't easy, but the point is to bring you back to life.
So when you feel like this is the loneliest day of the year, remember. He's here. He may not bring you flowers, but He'll bring you peace. He may not literally hold your hand, but He'll hold your heart.
"Because you are precious in my sight, and honored, and I love you, I will give people in exchange for you, and nations for your life." -Isaiah 43:4
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