One needs only to visit a card shop around Valentine's Day to find a wide variety of definitions of and perspectives on love. Many are romanticized and dependent on feelings of affection for the other person. Others center on the characteristics and behavior of the other person that elicit a loving response. While still others may hinge on propriety and convention based on the nature of a relationship, such as husband to wife, child to parents, parents to child, etc.

Christian love on the other hand has a much more profound meaning and resides in the very essence of who God is. God is love. God loves us no matter what. It is an unconditional love as well as an unconventional love. A love that reaches out even when rebuffed. A love that gives freely especially when undeserved. A love that accepts us as we are. A love that takes on our imperfections and accomplishes on our behalf what we can't do ourselves. A love that confronts death to keep us connected to the one who personifies Love.

It is because we have been loved, that we are able to love. The more we recognize the power of God's love at work in our lives, the more we are able to love ourselves and others. Jesus sums up the law into two statements: "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your mind . . . You shall love your neighbor as yourself." (Matt. 22:37-39) We know the second part as the Golden Rule: "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." That's how God deals with us. That's how God asks us to deal with one another.

We also know that being loved is an essential dynamic in the development of healthy children. When they experience love because of who they are and not what they do, they also know that they are loveable. This contributes to their self-esteem and sense of self-worth. When they feel good about who they are, they also are able to show love to others. It is an extension and mirror of our relationship to God.

The best gift we can give our children and one another is love. Such love is an action. It involves a commitment to love no matter what. Such love flows from a heart and soul that has been touched by the love of God.

The following are ways of practicing love:

• Pray daily to be filled with God's love. Remember God tells us to ask and promises to give.
• Practice random acts of kindness. Look for ways that you can make people feel special and important. Try to be spontaneous.
• Tell people you care about that you love them. Let people know how you feel about them. Accompany your words with a hug, look or a gesture of affection.
• Treat others as you want them to treat you. Put yourself in their shoes and ask yourself, "What is it I would like done to me, if I were in their situation."
• Reflect before you react. Give yourself time to think about what is the most loving response, especially if your impulse is to respond in a negative way.
• Think kind thoughts about others, recognizing that your thoughts play an important role in organizing your behavior.
• Do something loving for yourself. We cannot care about others if we don't feel cared about ourselves. Treat yourself as special. After all God does.
• Take stock each day on how you are doing. Ask yourself: "How have I shown love today?"
• Ask for God's forgiveness in your failure to love.