Bonus post: For Valentines Day.

To the God who is love. Who defines and exemplifies love. Whose standard of love is lifted so high that we at best can only reflect that love. I worship You, I adore You, I love You on this day of love. I write a love letter to You. . .

I love You because You first loved me. You are my Father. You made me. You made me and designed me, inside and out. You made me over again at my new birth, and gave me new and beautiful gifts. 

You put me with people who loved me, in spite of all their flaws. Mom and Grandma, Aunt Violet, 

Aunt Lucille. 

You put me in a country where I could think independently and not be punished. Where I could pursue an education. Where I could enjoy Your gifts of music and art and literature--and even to express them myself.

You've given me the beauty of a sunset, the majesty of a mountain piercing the sky, the lullaby of ocean waves crashing on the shore. 

You've given me the love of a child, or two children, of grandchildren . . . and such a wealth of life and love and memories and pain lies in those words, but in them, I know Your deepest love.

You have given me friends and churches and writers, fro here to Australia and back again, who have enriched my life. 

You have given me Ray. Which is still the newest, and most precious, gift of all, on this day of love.

Not to mention all those spiritual gifts. Salvation, forgiveness, justification, hope for today and hope for tomorrow. 

You have walked with me through each and every day of my life, through the times when I was mistreated, when my heart broke, when I screwed up. Your presence sustained me even when I was unaware of it. 

How do I love Thee? Let me count the ways, and come up short, because the reasons why I love You are beyond measure. 

You love me beyond the farthest reach of the most distant galaxy. You love me to the depth of the bottomless sea. You love me beyond time itself. 

Happy Valentines Day to the Lover of my Soul.