How Do You Spell L-O-V-E?

The first speller, one of the younger middle schoolers, was given the word grape. It seemed like the students, teachers, and parents in attendance at the spelling bee all exhaled at once. This was an easy one, a warm-up. Still, I found myself spelling it along in my head with the student, g-r-a-p-e. 

All the words in the first round felt easy. Then one student was given raisin. 

Remember it ends in i-n, not e-n, I whispered in my head. . . . Whew, they got it. Nice job. 

Then someone was given the word walrus, which made me giggle, because walruses are funny and the word sounded funny, and I was relieved for the speller that it was a simple enough word to sound out. Then came wither. And although I didn’t hesitate typing it today, I felt the tension in the gymnasium as the speller paused. I tried to guess where they struggled. Did they wonder, Is it w-h or just w? Or perhaps, does it end in e-r or i-r?

I found myself spelling every single word in my head, trying to telepathically send the correct letters into the minds of the students competing. Even though my son was holding his own in the competition, and I was of course, cheering for him, I was also cheering for each of the other kids. I wanted every kid to spell all the words right. It felt like everyone in the room felt the same way. If a student misspelled something, you could literally feel the entire gym sigh in disappointment with them. 

I wondered who else was spelling in their heads. 

And I was struck with the thought that maybe Jesus was. 

That perhaps not only was Jesus spelling in His almighty head, cheering each of these spellers on, but that during a soccer game He even may cheer for every player as they go for the ball. When we give a presentation, it may be that Jesus listens well to our ideas and never gets distracted. If you’re a stylist, perhaps Jesus delights in the sound of your shears and the finished product of the haircuts you give the clients sitting in your chair. If you work in education, you could imagine that Jesus appreciates the system you’ve set up at your school to engage the students. Jesus even wants your toddlers to take good naps, so you’ll be refreshed. We know God is in the details, but maybe we don’t always think of Jesus rooting for us, each and every one of us, wherever we go, because for believers in Jesus we are all His younger brothers and sisters , and He is our biggest fan.

The LORD your God is with you,
the Mighty Warrior who saves.
He will take great delight in you;
in his love he will no longer rebuke you,
but will rejoice over you with singing. —Zephaniah 3:17 NIV

Jesus delights in us. He loves us. He rejoices and sings over us.

That doesn’t mean we will always spell the word correctly or get to the ball on time or have the relationship or diagnosis we want. What it does mean is that Jesus is rooting for us? That He is always with us. That He will fight to protect us from lies and evil. He will steer us clear from danger. He’ll point us to goodness and mercy. He will never ever leave us. Jesus even sent the Holy Spirit to be our personal Helper.

And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you. —John 14:16–17 ESV

The Holy Spirit is dwelling inside of us whispering how to spell the proverbial “words” we’re presented with.

We have choices. 

We can choose to listen to the Spirit’s promptings. 

Or not. 

We can try to do it on our own. 

Or listen to His suggestions. 

But when we listen, when we trust the Lord, He’ll always give us the correct spelling, the right directions, the best route, the perfect timing. What we do with it—is up to us.  

We will hear other voices too—similar to the voice of a young student in the gym yelling out an incorrect spelling. These may be the voices of culture, social media, our own sinful desires, or our enemy the devil. And we can choose to listen to those voices if we like. God gives us free will. 

Or, we can read our Bibles, spend time in prayer, learning to hear Jesus’ voice more loudly than the others, because His voice is the way to life. Then we can learn truths like this:

I paid a huge price for you:
    all of Egypt, with rich Cush and Seba thrown in!
That’s how much you mean to me!
    That’s how much I love you!
I’d sell off the whole world to get you back,
    trade the creation just for you.
“So don’t be afraid: I’m with you.” —Isaiah 43:3–5 MSG

Jesus is with us. He paid The biggest price for us—His very life. He’d trade the entire world just for you. He is cheering so loudly for us, delighting in us, fighting for us, singing over us, because He loves us. You and me. His children. With all His heart. Nothing brings Jesus more joy than us doing life with Him. So, if someone asks, “How do you spell ‘love’ this Valentine season? You can boldly answer, “J-E-S-U-S.”

—Written by Laura L. Smith. Used by permission from the author. Click here to connect with Laura.