“It’s just a box. A plain old box.”

The words that ran around in my head all morning upon the realization that my daughter was taking an undecorated shoe box to school for her Valentine’s container.

I tried my best to shove all the crazy down. You know, the crazy that makes you start asking yourself all kinds of questions. Questions like: Will people think I’m a deadbeat mom because of this? Will other kids laugh at her because it’s not decorated?  And then of course on the heels of guilt for me is always lots of excuses. So, I started in: Well, she took a shoe box because I didn’t have enough time. I had to work all day yesterday, I had to get my husband and sons ready for their weekend getaway. There were conferences this week and small group leader’s meetings to host and on and on….

In the middle of my crazy I caught a glimpse of my daughter sitting at the counter eating her breakfast, smiling, happy & content. So I asked her, “Do you want to add anything to your box?” She just glanced up at me and said, “No mom, I think it looks great. It’s just a box, but it’s a pretty one.”

I looked at the box again and thought “She’s right. It is kind of pretty.”

“It doesn’t really matter what the outside looks like anyways, all the goodies go inside.”

She’s right of course. The outside isn’t what matters most. It’s the stuff inside.

We spend so much time and energy making things appear beautiful on the outside when all the while God is whispering to our hearts that his desire is for us to beautify our insides. And one of the best ways to do this is by simply loving others. John 13:35 says, “Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”

Our love for one another is the thing that will prove to the world that we are His.

As I scrolled through my FB feed this morning I saw pictures of some pretty amazing Valentine’s boxes. Time was taken, thought was put into them, love was given. My dear friend Sarah spent her late night hours finishing an act of love her daughter Olivia started that included homemade loom bracelets and perler bead crafts, each in the favorite colors of her classmates. Unfortunately Olivia got sick and wasn’t able to finish them all, so mom stepped in to help.  And I contend that this, this small act of love, is what shouts to our world that we are Christ followers.

Because truth be told, the perler beads and the loom bracelets aren’t what matters. What makes all the difference is love. The love behind the idea to make something special for all of her classmates and the love behind a mom staying up late to accomplish it.

A box can be just a box…if there isn’t any love attached to it. And a loom bracelet is just a loom bracelet, without a mother’s love tied to it.

Which also means that my daughter’s plain old shoe box, when carrying the names of her classmates written with love, is so much MORE than just a plain old shoe box. 

Because love is what makes all the difference. His love for us should be the driving force behind our love for others. So, this Valentine’s weekend let’s make an effort to love well.  It doesn’t matter so much the details involved as it does the love behind it. Let’s do what Pastor Dave shared about last weekend in church, let’s be people who love well over time.  Love: It’s what makes all the difference.