Holiday} Valentines Inspirations

MY HOME

A house of prayer

VALENTINES

This is My commandment,

that you love one another,

just as I have loved you.

Greater love has no one than this,

that someone lay down his life

for his friends.

You are My friends

if you do what I command you.

John 15:12-14 NASB

ARROWS

Having grandsons, a Nerf gun will do too.

May our aim be to know Christ,

to experience the dynamic power of His resurrection,

sharing in His sufferings,

becoming like Him in His death (Phil. 3:10).

May we focus our attitudes and energies

on maintaining harmony in the church,

building each other up so that

our prayers will be powerful and effective (Rom. 14:19).

May we aim to live honorable lives before God

and the watching world,

leading vast multitudes to righteousness (2 Cor. 8:21).

BALLOONS

Soar high in the skies, O God!

Cover the whole earth with your glory!

Psalm 57:5 The Message

If you watch your step on the Sabbath

and don't use my holy day for personal advantage,

If you treat the Sabbath as a day of joy,

God's holy day as a celebration,

If you honor it by refusing "business as usual,"

making money, running here and there –

Then you'll be free to enjoy God!

Oh, I'll make you ride high and soar above it all.

Isaiah 58:13-14 The Message

CANDLES

Father God,

please grant us an energetic passion

that fuels us and encourages others

in the causes of our King.

May Your Word be in our hearts like a fire

shut up in our bones so that

no matter what our circumstances,

we must declare Your Truth boldly and faithfully (Jer. 20:9).

May we fan into flame every gift of God

that is in us (2 Tim. 1:6),

letting our light so shine before all men so that

they see our good works

and glorify our Father in Heaven (Matt. 5:16).

CANDY

How sweet are your words to my taste,

sweeter than honey to my mouth!

Psalm 119:103 ESV

~~~

May humanly immeasurable multitudes

begin to taste and see

that the Lord is wonderful (Ps. 34:8).

CARDS

It’s over fifty years old, an intricate German Valentine my dad gave me when I was about seven. I’ve been tearing the house apart trying to find it so that I can post a photo, but I’m not as organized as I thought I was.

O God,

may You always be our first Love.

Help us to love others with the same considerate energies

with which we love ourselves.

May our words be backed by actions,

not tossed aside as cards exchanged in years gone by.

When we say, “I love you,” may it never be

based upon fleeting emotions that change

with circumstances or when taunted by dark spirit forces,

but rather marked by an eternal commitment

that is selfless, steadfast, and strong,

choosing to love even when it hurts.

CHERUBS

They’re symbolic of love. But God,

For He will give His angels charge concerning you,

To guard you in all your ways.

Psalm 91:11 NASB

COLORS

PINK

Symbolizes love, romance, femininity, breast cancer, abortion regret… For all who have girls or are expecting girls – that they be filled with the passion of a princess for their King… For those facing breast cancer, or any form of cancer, please invade every cell in their bodies making all whole and holy… That young girls and women everywhere willingly embrace and cherish the role and responsibilities ordained for them by God, that they recognize their irreplaceable value as wives, mothers, and women of great destiny… That these always strive to be women of virtue as defined by Proverbs 31… That women facing unplanned pregnancies choose life for their children.

PURPLE

Symbolizes royalty, wisdom, honor… That we conduct ourselves as children of our God and King, clothed in robes of righteousness, glorifying our Father… That we serve as faithful and faith-filled royal ambassadors, expanding the love, knowledge and influence of His Kingdom…

RED

WHITE

Come now, and let us reason together,

saith the LORD:
though your sins be as scarlet,

they shall be as white as snow;

though they be red like crimson,

they shall be as wool.
Isaiah 1:18 KJV

YELLOW

Symbolizes deceit, cowardice, hope, light…

Please expose every form of deception…

May we never draw back,

but continually remain bold

in our efforts to advance Truth

and make Your Name famous…

May we never fear or be dismayed,

for You are with us;

You are our God. You will strengthen us, yes,

You will help us. You will hold us firmly

with Your righteous right Hand (Is. 41:10)…

May we be faithful in bearing Your light

within a world that seemingly grows darker

with each passing day.

CRAFTS

MAKING VALENTINES

We seek opportunities to share the love of Christ in creative ways with children in classrooms or strangers on the street. After spray painting poster paper, we apply gold or silver “spray webbing,” cut out heart shapes and then hot glue curling ribbon, scripture, flowers, leaves, feathers, fabric – snippets of anything you might find around the house. Glue a verse about God’s love, along with a piece of candy, to the back and they’re ready to share. Watercolors painted onto high quality watercolor cardstock also makes beautiful Valentines.

We can ask God for special blessings upon each special seed, that it move deeply into fertile soil, bearing fruit that cannot be humanly measured.

CRAFTS

MAKING VALENTINES

FEATHERS

Despite overwhelming circumstances,

may people always remember

that God longs to protect us and carry us

in the shadow of His Wings (Presence)

(Ps. 91:4; Ps. 17:8).

GLITTER

May we always be quick to recognize

the distinction

between glitter vs. gold, ~ trash vs. treasure.

The things of this world will soon

be destroyed (2 Peter 3:10-11).

May we reject every temptation to allow them

to control our lives and consume our limited time,

resources, and energies.

May we pour our lives and resources

into that which You value,

people over possessions.

GLUE

RIBBON

Father,

may we be relentlessly bound to You,

Your Word, Your Will, Your Wisdom,

the needs of the people of Your World,

and to holiness,

no matter what the cost.

SCISSORS

Father,

please cut away everything that hinders

our serving You with all of our hearts and minds,

and the very best of our resources and energies.

CROSS

The essence of love...

…but God shows his love for us in that

while we were still sinners,

Christ died for us.

Romans 5:8 ESV

~~~

“Anyone who intends to come with me has to

let me lead. You’re not in the driver’s seat; I am.

Don’t run from suffering; embrace it.

Follow me and I’ll show you how.

Self-help is no help at all.

Self-sacrifice is the way, my way,

to saving yourself, your true self.

What good would it do to get everything you want

and lose you, the real you?

What could you ever trade your soul for?”

Mark 8:34-37 The Message

~~~

I have been crucified with Christ;

it is no longer I who live,

but Christ lives in me;

and the life which I now live in the flesh

I live by faith in the Son of God,

who loved me and gave Himself for me.

Galatians 2:20 NKJV

DOILIES ~ LACE

Psalm 139 speaks of how God designed us, fearfully and wonderfully knitting us together in our mother's womb. With all we know about DNA, this psalm has even more powerful significance.

Father God,

please pour out a passion and appreciation for You

and for the wonder of the lives You have designed

and delight in.

FLOWERS
The grass withers, the flower fades,
But the word of our God stands forever.
Isaiah 40:8 NASB

~~~

So teach us to number our days,

that we may apply our hearts to wisdom.

Psalm 90:12 AKJV

HEART

Break my heart for what breaks Yours*

with everything I am and everything I have

for Your Kingdom’s Cause.

Grant me a heart that is desperate to hear

and resolutely respond to

Your mighty shouts,

as well as Your most gentle whispers.

May the strong mountains within the hearts of all humanity
be moved, crumbled, and cast into the sea
that their vision may no longer be hindered
but that You are what they seek and see.
We unite our hearts with Yours,
desiring that vast multitudes long to experience a dynamic
relationship with You.
Please bind the spirit that blinds the minds of the lost
and loose the Spirit of Adoption into their hearts
so that they cry, “Abba Father!”
Give me this heart, I pray –
a heart that beats for You,
lives for You,
and is willing to die for You
that others might eternally delight
in Your magnificent Presence.
(*Hosanna ~ Brooke Fraser)

JEWELRY

May multitudes respond to the causes and call

of Your Kingdom

as one who finds rare jewels,

committing everything they are

and everything they have

to win as many souls as possible

to Christ (Matt. 13:45).

May marriages last lifetime,

with husbands rising up as the spiritual leaders

of their families,

considering what’s best for their children and wives,

seeking to live in a manner that will honor You

by producing

the greatest amount of fruit by serving

the homeless, the helpless, the hurting, the lost,

for we know this is Your Will in Christ Jesus (John 15).

KISS

Father,

kiss Your children throughout the earth –

those who know You

and those whom the enemy of all souls

seeks to bind and blind.

Cause them to feel the breath of Your Holy Spirit

as they sit in their homes, offices, automobiles,

when they rise up, when they lie down,

whatever they may be doing…

Cause them to feel Your Kiss, Your embrace,

and hear the Sound of Your Voice

above the noisy distractions that seek to

gain their attentions

and cause them to hear You even as they sleep.

For Your honor and glory,

we live and breathe and pray…

PENS - PENCILS

While addressing Valentine cards, ask God to write the story of your life.

PERFUME

Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph

in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge

in every place. For we are to God the fragrance of Christ

among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing.

2 Corinthians 2:14-15 NKJV

~~~

May we bear Your fragrance at all times and in all places.

SEALING WAX

Set me as a seal on your heart,

as a seal on your arm:

for love is strong as death;

jealousy is cruel as the grave:

the coals thereof are coals of fire,

which has a most vehement flame.

Many waters cannot quench love,

neither can the floods drown it:

if a man would give

all the substance of his house for love,

it would utterly be contemned.

Song of Solomon 8:6-7 AKJB

STUFFED ANIMALS

I love you, and I believe in you!

We were in a very dark season. Desperate to impart a vision to Melissa Ann, I took her with me to a writing conference in Colorado Springs. I bought her one of the bears in the photograph, and she bought one for me. Our Broadmoor bears became symbolic of my belief in her and her potential to lead vast multitudes to the Lord.