I WAS with my children between the blue of the sky and the blue of the sea. The little boat we were in was leaping over the swells. While my children were having fun, I was barely pretending. I looked as if I were enjoying the ride, but inside, I felt as if a thousand horses were galloping full force on my heart at the same rhythm as the boat’s motor. I felt myself shivering. I looked at the deep, freezing waters of the sea, wondering what I would do if something were to happen, since I did not know how to swim. My only desire was to arrive immediately to solid ground. Tormented by such thoughts, I decided to think about something else, so I looked at the splendid sky, the majestic mountain, and every detail of the great ocean that extended before me. I said to myself, “Patricia, you have a God who hears you, who works in your favor every time you need it, whose ear does not rest before your requests, who listens to your most insignificant plea. How can you be so afraid? Trust in Him.» I trusted, and I was able to stay calm during the rest of the trip until we reached the other shore.
That is our God. He is the One who has taken the time to design even the most remote constellation; He is the One who gave a shade of bluish white to the Pleiades and granted perfect harmony to the cosmos; He is the One who allowed the rivers to pass through the plains to satisfy the thirst of the people. The Maker of everything that exists, the Creator Himself, took the form of a servant and made Himself like you and me in order to give us salvation. That is love—a love that no mortal could ever equal.
Today we celebrate Valentine’s Day. Although it is a celebration motivated by something nice, as is praising the love between couples, there is no comparison with the love that God offers us through His Son. That is indeed a celebration for jumping with joy, and something to enjoy every day of our existence, not just one day out of the year. “We love Him because He first loved us» (1 John 4:19), and that love He has given us well deserves our celebration.
«Cause me to hear Your lovingkindness in the morning, for in You do I rust; cause me to know the way in which I should walk, for I lift up my soul to You» (Psalm 143:8).
«God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him» (1 John 4:16).