Welcome to the ‘Unshakeable Love’ Series. We are so glad you’re here.
It’s February and Valentine’s Day is right around the corner. The reminders for this day of love are are all around us. Just walk in any grocery or big chain store and it’s filled with flowers, bags and boxes of chocolate, balloons, stuffed animals, and more.
At my house though, Valentine’s will be just a regular day. Now, before you go feeling sorry for me, let me explain. Somewhere along the way in our almost 37 years of marriage, it was decided that we would no longer swap cards, send flowers, eat dinner out, or gift exchange on Valentine’s Day.
Now my sweet man is big on romance, but he says on this particular day flowers and dinner are too expensive (and he’s right), and that we are wasting our money on cards, because we just end up throwing them in the trash. His points seem valid.
But the flip side is, I still have every card he’s ever given me and I’ve treasured every box of chocolate, small gift, or bouquet of flowers. And, I’ve never taken any of it for granted.
So when he mentioned again recently that flowers were way too expensive for Valentine’s, I knew he was subtly reminding me of the agreement we made about not buying for the other. Although he did let it slip the other day that he had already bought my card. A smile crossed my face, and then he said, “Please don’t me buy one. You know I don’t need that.”
One of the things I appreciate about him is his practicality. I love that our life together is based on the love and friendship we share, and not on gifts or buying power.
I do like to receive a card or a grocery store bouquet occasionally, but we don’t have to shower each other with material things to prove a point or show off.
God wants us to enjoy a life outside of the material world that fixates on stuff. We don’t need the extra baggage to survive, to be happy, or to enjoy one another.
God’s word tells us, “Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends.” 1 Corinthians 13:7 ESV
I believe that’s what my husband wants us to remember and live by. It’s God’s unshakeable love. It is His unconditional and everlasting love that allows us to live a life centered on Him. Our commitment to the Lord, to each other, and to our family far outweighs the extraneous stuff that we accumulate. We are not perfect and we don’t always agree on everything, but we are committed to eternity and not to the pleasures of this earth.
Tweet ThisSo instead of focusing on one day and one month to show our love to one another, we make it a part of our everyday life. My sweet man doesn’t require gifts and he reminds me often not to buy him anything.
I’m okay with that because I know the way to his heart–my guy loves good food and chocolate. I do my best to see that he has a good meal in the evening, I cook a big breakfast on the weekends because he looks forward to that, and once or twice a month I prepare a favorite dessert. If I’m short on time then I purchase a bag or two of dark chocolate to take the place of the homemade dessert. I’m convinced chocolate is quite possibly the most dependable gift there is.
In turn, he treats me to dinner when he knows my work days have been long, he makes the occasional shopping trip to Wal-Mart so I don’t have to, and he surprises me with a bag of my favorite candy or snack food.
You may think there isn’t a lot of romance in all of this, but I assure you there is. Our philosophy is pretty simple. ‘Life is not made up of stuff. Life is made up of people and the memories we make together.’ It’s about doing for the other because we want to.
Jeremiah 31:3 says, “I have loved you with an everlasting love.”
That’s what I want our marriage to reflect. I want to love my husband with an everlasting love, just like Christ loves me.
Here are 7 ways to show your husband that you love and adore him.
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- Hold his hand whenever you have an opportunity.
- Tell him you love him and thank him for what he does.
- Pray for him and with him.
- Send him a text or write a little note with an extra love affirmation.
- Speak words of encouragement to him on a daily basis.
- Plan a date night at home, complete with dinner and a movie.
- Make time for meaningful conversation and really listen to him.
There are so many ways to show your husband how much you love and appreciate him. And while the list above is not exhaustive, it’s a great place to start.
I am blessed by my sweet man. I love his heart for the Lord; I love that he loves me more today than when he married me, and I love that he is a wonderful father and grandfather.
As a special bonus this month, here is the Scripture Reading Plan for our February ‘Unshakeable Love’ Series.
Prayer:
Dear Lord, Thank you so much for your unconditional love. I am so grateful that you brought us together so many years ago, and I’m even more thankful that YOU are the focal point of our marriage. You cover us in love, grace, and mercy and You make the impossible, possible. May we continue to grow in your ways and spread love everywhere we go. In your Precious Name~Amen.
Blessings & Hugs!
Thank you for the Scripture reading plan! What a perfect way to read God’s Word through the month of February:)
Thank you Kristine! I like having a daily plan to walk me through Scripture–habit forming.
I’m looking forward to this month’s Unshakable Love series. You and your husband sound so much like me and my husband. It’s really amazing because I could feel your heart as I was reading. We have the same agreement at Valentines Day for the same reasons.
One thing we do for my mother-in-law since her her husband (Michael’s dad) is no longer able to – we send her a bouquet of flowers the week before Valentines Day when Buckner has their annual Valentines Dinner. And then a card on Valentines Day.
I’m delightful to know I’m not alone. Not that it bothers me I don’t get flowers on Valentines. My young niece and her husband are doing the same thing so I think more and more couples are not getting caught up in the material things and are focusing on love everlasting. And better ways to spend their money.
Can’t wait to see what February holds. This is great start!
Love you,
Cyndi
Thank you Cyndi for your kind words. It’s the time together that matters the most. I’m so thankful and blessed for my godly man.
These are great reminders! It really is all about going back to the basics and cherishing the love God has given us through our spouses.
Amen! Amen! Thank you sweet friend for the encouraging words.
Great Post Mitzi, My husband and don’t typically celebrate Valentine’s day either, instead we choose to honor and love each other every day. Be blessed today friend. <3 Misty
I’ve had a number of people who have said the same thing. That’s good to hear we are celebrating for the right reasons. Hugs sweet friend.
You two are soooo sweet! Great post – will link it later in my series. xx
Thank you so much friend. Happy Valentine’s Day to you.
I love these reminders to love and adore our husbands and loved ones with everything we have! Life is precious, and we need to be intentional about showing our love for one another while we are still here! Thanks for sharing, sister!
Thank you Lauren for your sweet words. Life is indeed precious and we have the opportunity to make every day count. Hugs!
Hey friend! Great post, Mitzi! We do tend to focus on a day, a national holiday, to think we need to buy certain things to show our devotion. But your husband has a point. And these are my favorite lines, “God wants us to enjoy a life outside of the material world that fixates on stuff. We don’t need the extra baggage to survive, to be happy, or to enjoy one another.” Amen! Thanks for the reminder! Hugs!
Thank you Karen for those kind words. My sweet man has a great perspective on lots of things. He’s a romantic for sure, but it’s not measured by one day, once a year. Hugs to you!!
Great post to remind us to love everyday. We practice this too, and we do celebrate valentine’s day not for each other but as a family. We remind our children of God’s great love for them and make the day special but from the comfort of our home. We have been doing this since they were little. As we have found by doing this it’s sets the standard that they don’t need to go out and do all the extravagant things just because it’s a holiday. It has been a blessing to see the kids create their own love notes to us, not just on valentine’s day but they do this all year. Sharing your post with our Living Our Priorities community.
Thank you Timberley for your kind words and for sharing the traditions of your own family. We can show our love every day in many different ways and mean so much. Happy Valentine’s to you and your family.
Hi can you please send me
January bible reading plan