Heartbreaker

I couldn’t do it.

I couldn’t buy the red Valentine shirt that had “Heartbreaker” scribbled across it. Not for my sweet little two-year-old son.

I want him to be cute and charming of course, but I don’t want him to go around breaking anyone’s heart, if he can help it.

After I left the store, the word still tumbled around in my head:

Heartbreaker.

And then the Scripture verse that came to mind was Ezekiel 36:26. I learned it in the NIV, which reads like this:

“I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.”

I think the New Living Translation mashes it down even better, though.

“And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart.”

One of the beautiful aspects of our salvation is that we are given the Holy Spirit to guide us and to prompt us towards a lifestyle which is righteous and gracious and pleasing to God. This is a lot easier with a “responsive” heart.

Sometimes, though, I feel like that fleshy heart of mine starts to turn back into stone, and it’s as if God has to break it back down to be malleable and tender again.

In that sense, I think it is safe to say that God is both a Heart-Breaker and a Heart-Restorer.

When God breaks your heart, it is not simply a rupture of bitter or sad emotions like we associate with the “heartbreak” of a jilted human relationship. Rather, this includes–and surpasses–our emotions and lands in the spiritual level.

When God breaks your heart, pride and selfishness ooze out.

Selfish gain is scraped away to make room for servitude and hospitality.

Bitterness and resentment are carved out, to be replaced with joy and humility.

Everything we “once held dear” is now no longer valuable to us because, when our hearts are splayed open before God, suddenly His glory is all that matters–and how we long to just be part of Him, and only Him!

So back to Valentine’s Day…

I’ve always loved Valentine’s Day. I never had a “special someone” on V-Day until the year I married my husband,  but I’ve still loved it nonetheless.

To sit around moping that you are not in a relationship is pointless. Don’t feel sorry for yourself, go find ways to show love to someone else.

This is one of the reasons I think Christians should actively participate in Valentine’s Day. Whether you’re single, dating or married, February 14th gives you an amazing (and easy!) opportunity to spread the love of Jesus Christ to a love-hungry world. And maybe it is just a Hallmark holiday, but we can still roll with it.

It could be as simple as buying someone flowers. Or paying for someone’s coffee behind you. Use random acts or words of kindness to demonstrate the undeserved and, honestly, unnecessary love that God has shown us.

And guess what, starting tomorrow all the pretty pink and red stuff goes on clearance, so if you missed out today you can still spread the store-bought love throughout the week. 😉

All this to say, look for ways to actively love people. And let God break your heart so you can love others the same  way He loves us.

♡