Valentine’s Day is often framed as a celebration of love - shared with a spouse, friends, family, or even quietly with yourself and God. Yet for many, this day does not stir joy but ache. It becomes a painful reminder of what has been lost: a friendship that faded, a relationship that ended, a marriage that broke, or a loved one who has died. This reflection is for those who are grieving.
To have loved deeply and to have been loved in return is one of life’s greatest gifts. But when that love is taken away, grief follows. And grief, in many ways, never fully leaves. It may soften with time, but it lingers like a wound that has closed but still aches, easily reopened by a memory, a song, a place, or a passing moment. Eventually, you learn how to live alongside it - a quiet hum beneath daily life.
As Vision from Marvel’s WandaVision so poignantly put it, “What is grief, if not love persevering?”
In the midst of that pain, it can feel unbearably isolating, as though no one else truly understands what you carry. But what if you were not as alone as you feel? What if there is Someone who understands your grief more deeply than you ever could? (Psalm 34:18). A loving Father who looks upon you with compassion and longs to lift the weight you bear (Lamentations 3:32-33). Not One who is distant or indifferent, but One who knows sorrow intimately because He experiences it daily.
God created the world out of love, desiring relationship, joy, and communion with humanity (Genesis 1). Yet that love was not returned (Genesis 3). We turned away. We chose the creation over the Creator (Romans 1:21-25). And in doing so, we cut ourselves off from the very Source of life (John 1:4). From God’s perspective, this was death, and He grieves this fallen world (Ephesians 2:1; Genesis 6:6).
Yet grief did not lead Him to abandon us. God’s answer to grief was not distance, but nearness (John 1:14; Matthew 1:23). Because He is love, He chose restoration over rejection. He gave His one and only Son - His very self - so that what was broken could be made whole again (1 John 4:9-10; Romans 5:8; Colossians 1:19-20). Through Jesus’ death and resurrection, loss does not have the final word. Death is no longer the end (1 Corinthians 15:54-55; John 11:25-26). Life is offered again. Hope is reborn (1 Peter 1:3).
And this is why God is the remedy for grief (Psalm 147:3). In Him, you are fully known and deeply loved (Psalm 139:1-4; Romans 8:38-39). You are not forgotten, not discarded, not beyond healing (Isaiah 49:15-16; John 6:37; Jeremiah 30:17). There is always hope - another day, another chance, and an eternity where pain no longer exists (Lamentations 3:22-23; Isaiah 34:18-19; Revelation 21:4; Romans 8:18). A future where love is no longer fragile or fleeting (1 Corinthians 13:8; 1 John 4:16).
So, in your grief, please turn toward Him. Pour your heart out to the One who is already pouring His love into you. Bring Him your anger, your longing, your unanswered questions.
Dear reader, you do not grieve alone - “The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit” (Psalm 34:18). And your grief will not last forever – “Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy” (John 16:22).
