I watched a video the other day from when my boys were small. There was one thing that really caught my attention. Every so often, one of them would run up to the camera or come behind it and say real quietly, “I Love You.” Those three one syllable declarations warmed my heart and reminded me of the power that these simple words can have on our lives. I don’t get around to visiting my Mom nearly as much as I would like since my days keep me quite busy. But every so often at the end of our conversation on the phone, I love to surprise her with an unusual ending: “I Love You Mom.” Most nights I climb into bed long after my husband is asleep and snoring deeply. I lean over to his side and whisper these three acclamations of love knowing full well he can’t hear me. It matters not and I say them anyway and he obliges me the same way in the morning along with a whopper of a kiss on my cheek (still not enough to wake me from my slumber). Even though these opportunities arise every day in my life to share with those around me how I feel about them, I am reminded that I am often neglectful of telling the most important person in my life just how I feel about him. God wants to hear from me that I love him just as much as I want to know the same thing from him. I certainly don’t have to look very far to be reminded just how much he loves me: my home, family, provisions, and nature all surround me. I urge you to take the opportunity during this week to speak or show others around you just how much you really care about them. Say it aloud or write it in a note or on a card. Don’t take for granted that people around you know how you feel about them. Everyone wants to hear these words from time to time . . . I Love You.
“And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us” (I John 3:23).