I Heart You!

Valentine’s Day 2023 is behind us. Cards have been sent or changed hands; boxes of chocolate have been opened. The dozen red roses from my husband are beginning to wilt, but our marriage of forty years remains strong.

February will always be the month for hearts, so let’s continue to celebrate this Week of Love.  

The Heartbeats of Love

Beating hearts depict love, right? Why, exactly? I guess because the heart is what pumps life-giving blood throughout the body. Without blood, we do not exist. The rich, red blood supplies much-needed oxygen that the body requires. So when the heart flutters or skips a beat or starts to race, can we blame love for its irregularity?

There must be at least some truth to that because my heart flutters when Parky reaches to grab my hand as we walk down the sidewalk side by side. That simple gesture of interlocking my long fingers around his thick, worn fingers gives me a sense of security, of wantedness and love. You’d think after forty years, that feeling would fade, but no.  

Flowers can have that same effect. When Parky and I were dating in college, separated by the Alabama-Mississippi border, he often sent me flowers. I loved walking into my dorm and seeing a bouquet of flowers at the front desk with my name on them. I got a kick out of reading the card. Sometimes the message was simple; other times, it was heartwarming.

Skipping a heartbeat can be another indicator of love. I got palpitations whenever Parky would surprise me by driving 300 miles across the state line to visit me on the weekend when I was in school. I’m sure my heart skipped a few beats with a surprise Parky gave me after we were married. I had just returned home from an international trip. He walked me onto the backyard deck, and there it was! The hot tub I had been wanting.

I also loved the time he surprised me with another dog after our dog unexpectedly passed away. He said I had too much love to give! He picked out one from the local shelter that looked a lot like the dog we had lost.

How about a racing heart? Okay, most of the time I agree it’s from over-exertion, but let’s pretend it’s another love effect. The night Parky asked me to marry him, my heart could have won the Talladega 500! He took me to an elegant restaurant on the top of the Hyatt House Regency hotel in Birmingham, Alabama. The view was spectacular, overlooking the lights of the city. Mid-way through dinner, he presented me with a marquis-cut diamond white gold ring and asked if I would marry him.

My heart was racing the day we got married, too. I decided not to look at my wedding band until Parky put it on my finger. It was custom-made with diamond chips half-way around the band, mimicking an eternity band. I had resisted the urge to look when I went to the jeweler’s to try it on. Yep, my heart was racing when I looked upon the beautiful band as Parky slipped it on my finger on our wedding day.

Symbolisms of the Heart

I guess one could surmise that love is a stimulant for the heart, causing one to act in ways that reveal kindness, joy, and desire. The Bible often uses the symbolism of the heart to indicate:

• brokenness (like Hannah, who desperately wanted a child)
• hardening (like Pharoah, who refused to let the Hebrew people go)
• longing (like Joshua, who yearned for the Hebrews to follow God’s covenant)
• abiding (like anyone with a changed heart)         
• rejoicing (like David in praise to God)
• fullness (like Samuel pleading with the Israelites to return to God)
• a hiding place (like unbelievers, who come under conviction)
• testing (like the prayers of David)
• purity or to purify (like when David was repentant of his sin regarding Bathsheba)
• fear (like David as he readied for battle while placing confidence in the Lord)
• intent (often harboring evil such as the Israelites towards their stubborn ways)
• middle or center (like heart of the seas)   

There are more, but I will stop. Obviously, the heart plays a significant role in the Kingdom of God. Jesus wants our heart because He understands that significance. He wants all of it – the whole shebang with its strengths and weaknesses, its attributes and deficiencies, its irregularities and steadfastness.

If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me (Jeremiah 29:13)

On Valentine’s Day, I had an appointment with a heart doctor. How appropriate. The racing and skipping of heartbeats recorded by a heart monitor could not be ignored. Funny, my heartbeats are being interpreted differently as I grow older. Nonetheless, fast, slow, irregular, or normal, my heart will always belong to the One who made it.