Love is a Choice

Love One Another 14 Day Challenge:

Day 1: Show Patience with someone.
Day 2: Overlook someone's shortcomings.
Day 3: Look beyond looks.
Day 4: Resist the impulse to categorize others.
Day 5: See a situation through the other person's eyes.
Day 6: Forgive somebody who has wronged you.
Day 7: Don't criticize actions or circumstances.
Day 8: Show mercy to someone.
Day 9: Give 10 minutes to really listen someone.
Day 10: Speak kindly.
Day 11: Say thank you to somebody.
Day 12: Focus on what you have in common with everybody you meet.
Day 13: Offer up a genuine compliment. 
Day 14: See everybody you talk to through God/s eyes. 

 Tis the season of conversation hearts and ridiculously over-sized teddy bears. Every time you walk into a grocery store or a gas station and see the walls covered with crimson boxes of chocolate and bouquets of roses, you know it's that time of year again--Valentine's Day.

And while we can enjoy this chance to indulge in a little dark chocolate and spend time focusing on those who mean the most to us in our lives, LDS.org has recently released a 14-day love challenge that gets Latter-day Saints thinking outside the typical heart-shaped box. 

Whether you're single, dating, or already married, this list will help you get more out of this wonderful holiday and will help you remember the truest source of love--that of our Heavenly Parents and our Savior. And, hopefully it will help us to develop more of that love within our hearts in turn.

So, this Valentine's Day, be sure to take the challenge and rejoice in the love that is all around us.

"Your Heavenly Father loves you, each of you, and that love never changes." --President Monson

"Pray for the love which allows you to see the good in your companion. Pray for the love that makes weaknesses and mistakes seem small. Pray for the love to want to lessen the load and soften the sorrows of your companion." --President Eyring make your

"Though we are incomplete, God loves us completely. Though we are imperfect, He loves us perfectly. Though we may feel lost and without compass, God’s love encompasses us completely." --President Uchtdorf

We all know that actions speak louder than words. We may say “I love you,” but do our actions back up that claim? In Love Is a Choice: Making Your Marriage and Family Stronger, Elder Lynn G. Robbins teaches us that love is more than a feeling — it is a commitment, a promise to be responsible, respectful, and responsive to the needs and experiences of other. And like any other action we undertake, perfecting the act of love requires a lifetime of practice and good choices.