Valentine's Day is right around the corner, and we're getting ready to start our advent journey to this special day. The first thing we did this year, was make these luminaries using repurposed applesauce, jam and peanut butter jars. I'm a little obsessed with saving jars these days! My mantle loves a new painted row of jars for each season that swings by, and the kids look forward to it too!
These will hold their little lights up until the night before Valentine's Day when we'll turn them into our "mailboxes." It's difficult to see in this photo taken my my iPad camera, but each heart has a name in the center. We'll put notes of encouragement to each other in the jars and then read them to each other the next day!
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The following post was written a year ago, and I thought I'd revive it to share our tradition with you. We will add one heart each day, studying what God says about LOVE out of 1 Corinthians 13 as Valentine's Day approaches...
{I especially love the first sentence, written a year before a started Homeschooling, when I had kids at separate schools and feeling so disheveled! Enjoy this blast from the past...}
Written in February, 2012...
I loved having the kids home yesterday for Lincoln's Birthday. I really do soak up and TREASURE these moments when we're all under one roof...
We actually had time to update our fun little "tree" we've had up in our living room for a few months. I made it from Trader Joe's bags a little brown paint and some staples...all things already in my house :)
It's been our Thankful Tree for Thanksgiving...Advent Tree for Christmas...and now, our Love Tree for Valentine's Day...
First...we painted the paper before cutting it into hearts :)
Some paintings were too sweet to cut :)
Then, we printed 1 Corinthians 13:4-9a (NASB) and cut them into strips...
Next, I drew hearts on the back and watched sweet little hands cut their own shape around my lines.
{Gotta snack while we work!}
Hole's punched, string tied, and the verse reads like so across the branches...
It's all true...2 Timothy 3:16 says All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. Just going through each heart with with the kids today and helping them understand what God says love IS, was sooooooo good. It was especially hilarious to have Cole and Cora break into a squabble right in the midst of our little chat about love. Because scripture was hanging right before our eyes, I was able to direct us back to God's words very quickly :) Cole has had a REALLY short fuze lately...what a great opportunity to minister to his spirit.
"Cole...God says love is not easily angered and is patient. You need to be more patient with Cora, and not get angry so quickly." His attention was fixed, and when I spoke of God's word, his eyes melted. Magic words? Better. God's Words. Was the rest of the day without conflict? No. But the seeds have been planted, and well watered over time, God promises they won't come back void.
It's do good to be in His Word...and I really these sweet little hearts reminding me of what is TRUE about love. If I say I LOVE my kids, my husband, my neighbor then I pray all these things are true of me. Lord, by your Spirit, make them true.
