tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4495306595120854029.post1813237477286709279..comments2024-02-27T05:32:55.338-06:00Comments on Created to be HIS: Valentine's Day TraditionsBethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01937617050831611588noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4495306595120854029.post-385404607535949142012-02-14T10:03:24.684-06:002012-02-14T10:03:24.684-06:00It is SO important for us to understand the backgr...It is SO important for us to understand the background behind the "celebrations" we involve ourselves in! I have read a few different versions of the history of Valentine's Day, most of them very similar to the one you have shared here. It is a shame that the world puts so much emphasis on the charade of it all. Hearts and candy on Valentine's Day, eggs and bunnies on Easter, Shamrocks on St. Patrick's Day, Turkeys on Thanksgiving, presents and santa on Christmas.<br /><br />As with any other holiday, Mike and I take the bells and whistles with a grain of salt on Valentine's Day. Do I make a heart shaped cake, of course... but it's not the only day of the year I make a cake for my loved ones to let them know they're loved. Mike does spoil me in some way or another with a gift, but he has a tendency to do that for any occasion he can get an excuse to do so.<br /><br />The hearts come with Valentine's Day just as the tree and ornaments come with Christmas. Both have pagan origins, so we have to focus instead on what the "holiday" means for us personally. While New Years Day is spent by some establishing goals for their upcoming year, we use Valentine's Day as a way to establish goals in our relationships. Our kids tell each other what they're going to work on in their brother/sister relationships to make them closer and stronger siblings, Mike and I choose an area of focus and set goals that bring us and our love closer and stronger, and we always take a treat to our parents, acknowledging the loving honor we still have for them as grown adults.<br /><br />While holidays like Halloween have nothing that can be linked to Christ, Valentine's day can. Love... it's the foundation of our salvation. We were loved so much, Christ was sacrificed that we may know ultimate love. Forget those bells and whistles that are man-made commercialized creations... they just can't compare.Jennifer Emmerthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00343476472449478655noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4495306595120854029.post-24326112444379115822012-02-12T23:28:33.473-06:002012-02-12T23:28:33.473-06:00Mhmmm.. We still do a little something (VERY quie...Mhmmm.. We still do a little something (VERY quietly) for each other on Valentine's Day...but you are right... We need to examine the roots of EVERY holiday (Christmas, Halloween, Valentine's, etc.) to know what it is all about. Our kids won't be banned from Valentine's -- but they will be taught to avoid certain things ABOUT Valentine's because of their VERY pagan origins. And for the most part...we will just try to ignore making a huge deal about it. We are told to love one another on every day...not just focus it on one out of 364 days!Sarahhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12113910192375054172noreply@blogger.com