Happy Monday Morning!

I hope you had a fantastic weekend!

I was thinking about the celebration of Valentine’s Day over the weekend and contemplating the role this holiday plays in our ability to love and be loved. I thought about the romantic implications and how we become enamored with those who return our attention and affection. At some point, during my wonderings, I began to contemplate abundance.

We often define abundance in terms of materialism, such as money and things we accumulate like, cars, jewelry, property, and status. Now, don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing untoward or evil about those items. However, there’s more to abundance than the accumulation of riches gathered to make a statement to ourselves and others.

Experiencing abundance, in its essence, is a feeling of extraordinary gratitude. It’s an overflowing of joy in friendships, a celebration of milestones, and the appreciation of opportunities that lean in our direction. It’s knowing unconditional acceptance and regard and utilizing our talents and skills are to their full extent. And, yes, it’s love – romantic love, filial love, agape love, love of self, preferring others, accepting spiritual gifts, and seeing those who are different from us through a compassionate and empathic lens.

Steve Gilliland, an American motivational speaker, is concise in his expression of abundance. He wrote:

Gilliland’s words beg the question; do we experience times when we confuse various aspects in our lives regarding abundance. Are they related to accumulation or appreciation? We’ve heard the expression, use things and love people, not the other way around. When we take inventory, are we intentionally understanding the difference between the two, or do we sometimes replace or confuse one with the other?

St. Valentine, whose life we remember on this day, was a martyr in the mid-200’s A. D. He was accused of breaking the law by marrying couples in the military and of being a miraculous healer, something that was attributed to darkness in that time. But, as the legacy goes, he healed his jailor’s daughter of blindness and wrote a letter to her using the signature your Valentine to close his writing.

Understanding St. Valentine’s intention is the crux of celebrating his martyrdom. It’s also the impetus for the festivities surrounding romantic love, as we do on February 14th each year. My guess is that St. Valentine prioritized his passion for people by considering the importance of their lives and appreciation for their needs as higher than his accumulation of accolades for the many healings he performed.

Abundance is not lost to Scripture either. Here are a couple of references:

 “Indeed, I will bring it health and healing, and I will surely heal them. I will reveal to them an abundance of shalom and truth.” Jeremiah 33:6 (TLV)

“The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart, his mouth speaks.” Luke 6:45 (ESV)

“And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.” 2 Corinthians 9:8 (NIV)

Abundance then is something we experience intentionally, not some random act. It’s interesting to see the connections between appreciation and how we love. However, it’s also clear that we may get caught in an unhealthy cycle of preferring accumulation when we prioritize differently. As we relate these concepts to healing, for example, exploring the difference between appreciation and accumulation in light of abundance can lead to all genres of conversation and wonderment.

Enjoy your wonderings today and for the rest of the week. Think about how these concepts may affect you, your loved ones, your friends, and others with whom you come in contact. I believe the shift in perspective will provide new opportunities for exploration!

Be Well & Be Blessed!
Lucinda