Listen

“But I say to you who are willing to hear: Love your enemies. Do good to those who hate you. Bless those who curse you. Pray for those who mistreat you. If someone slaps you on the cheek, offer the other one as well. If someone takes your coat, don’t withhold your shirt either. Give to everyone who asks and don’t demand your things back from those who take them. Treat people in the same way that you want them to treat you.”

Luke 6:27-31

Think

If you’ve gone shopping in the last month, your eyes have likely feasted on a surplus of red and pink, flowers, hearts, and cupids from every angle. So you are likely very aware that today is Valentine’s Day. It has mostly become a commercial celebration of our traditional understanding of love – that is, romantic love. Our Listen lesson today reminds us that love is much more complex and complicated than can fit in a shoebox of notes or a card stock picture of a cartoon train that says “I choo-choo choose you” on it.

Love can be really hard to do. Those who are your enemies, those who hate you, curse you, mistreat you, harm you, take from you… all those are on our list of people we should do good toward, bless, pray for, and treat well. Consider the people in your life who least deserve a Valentine’s greeting from you and consider how you might express love to them – in blessing, prayer, or action.

Sarah Karber

Pray

Loving God, help me find ways to express love to everyone, the ones who make it easy and the ones who make it feel impossible.

Amen.

Go

Everyone is worthy of love.

I am worthy of love.