19 Ways to Say "I Love you!"

I read an article today entitled "64 Ways to say "I love you!"" I was surprised to find inspiration of practical ways I can let God know I love him and I thought I would share them with you! 

1. Embrace the present moments without fear or guilt.  This is a hard thing for most people...  We aren't like God, in that, even after we say sorry and sin is "taken care of" through repentance; we still remember.  Remembering our past can cause both fear and guilt... God doesn't want us to feel either which means you immediately know those memories aren't coming from him (not to mention the Bible tells us God forgets repented sin... So if he can't remember them himself would he bring them to memory in us?  Retorical, he doesn't!) Here's something you need to write down and next time your repented past is thrown in your face you can fight back (and this only works if we have already repented)... 2nd Timothy 1:7 "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind." - KJV
2. Live by the Golden Rule (Do unto others as you would have them do unto you).  It's funny how people aren't aware this "Golden Rule" comes from God directly in fact it's a little more in depth Leveticus 19:18 "...love your neighbor as yourself..." So treat others with the same regard you would treat yourself.
3. Toast each other over breakfast or dinner to say I love you.  This one I need to work on... I always forget to pray before I eat and I've never thought of it as being a way to tell God you love him before but I suppose it can be!
4. Read books aloud together.  Bible reading, enough said.
5. Do nothing together.  We always say "a mark of a great relationship is when you can 'just be' together.  Comfortable in a silence."  I think meditation on God is a lost art... How can we hear what God wants to say when we never shut ourselves up while in his presence?  I truely believe that there are some moments, even in our relationship with God, that no words need be spoken... Acknowledge he is with you and 'just be' with him... You will be surprised at the effect quiet moments have on you!
6. Be lavish in praise!  This one is pretty much self-explanitory... But how often do we miss it in a service or conversation... In a service God is sometimes lucky to see a hand raised because "it's not my personality." or "I don't want people to look at me."  I don't know who else is looking, and frankly I have learned not to care, God is pre-eminent and if He's looking I'm making sure He sees me being lavish for Him!
7. Trust your partner enough to cry together.  Trust is a HUGE issue in all relationships and for me it was, even in my relationship with God... I always said I trusted him but I found myself putting the same situations in his hands every time I prayed... And it made me wonder how they god out of his hands after the first time I put them there... Truth:  At a young age I learned to control my surroundings as a protection from hurt so I was always giving it to God then messin' with it myself and the fact is, he won't share credit, if he's gonna fix it you can't help... Even harder to swallow, if I'm messin' with things I supposedily gave to him to look after it's because I don't trust him to do it...  I don't know how to tell you to start really trusting God, only that if you pray for trust he will teach you... It may take hardships (and I could change that "may" to "will") but it's worth it and it works!
8. Act silly together!  One of my favorite quotes "Anyone can be passionate, but it takes real lovers to be silly." - Rose Franklin.  I know you're thinking I've lost my mind with this one, but allow me to explain... God made you with many aspects to your personality and you should share all of them with Him...  If you think something is funny, tell Him about it and laugh like you would with anyone else... He's not all serious you know (just look at the nose he put on... some people lol!)
9. Ask questions about opinions, feelings, thoughts.  Don't go makin' your own decisions before you ask for His advice, it's kind of like coming home with a surprise new car and expecting your spouse to foot the bill.
10. Encourage adventures and risks!  This is another doosey!  Sometimes we feel God wants us to do something, "move out" as some people call it, but it's a risk and we aren't adventurous enough to try it... Advice?  Get over it!  If God wants it and we do it we can only benefit! So pretend I'm standing behind you, close your eyes and feel the kick on your hinder parts I'm giving to get you moving in the direction He is calling you to!
11. Take pride in them. -- and show it!  I think most of us have been in a relationsip with someone who treated us well in private but seemed to almost ignore us in public... Whether they're embarrassed or just so taken up with the other people around doesn't really matter, the fact is, it makes you feel unimportant and eventually destroys the relationship if the behavior is not corrected.  Don't do that to God; if you wouldn't do something with him standing next to you, don't bother because he is, after all, standing next to you...  Plus, it's comparable to making an obvious overture toward someone else while your significant other is standing next to you. Don't ignore him in conversation, tell people about your loving relationship!  I get so (yes I'm going to say it even though I know I shouldn't) jealous when people talk about their relationships because they have something wonderful that I, at this moment, do not... Maybe more people would want a relationship with God if they heard about yours...
12. Spend time with them.  This one is pretty easy to understand... I know life can be crazy busy but if God is losing out on your time all together, flat out, you need to cancel something and spend that time with him.
13. Ask for hugs and kisses.  Obviously not literal... But Part of loving God is knowing he loves you and it's ok to ask him for good things in your life!  Remember Luke 12:6-7 "Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God. Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows." and it also says in Luke 11:9-10 "And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.  For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened."  So ask.
14. Take vacations together.  I am medaling here and I realize it... A vacation out of town is not a vacation away from God... Remember He's like a spouse and unless you're having an affair, He should be on vacation with you, so act accordingly.
15. Practice forgiveness. - Forgive others, not because the Bible says "if we don't forgive others God won't forgive us." but because he loved us enough to forgive us and give us a 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 10th, 22nd, and 49th (...etc...) chance and us forgiving others shows respect for Him and trust in what He can do in the lives of others.
16. Don't gossip or judge.  Self-Explanatory, and I have a blog that deals with such issues in more depth coming up...  But really, the thing we have to remember is we may not particularly fancy a certain person and what they do (it's especially hard when they are doing wrong to Him) but let it be His decision to judge them or forgive Him, respect Him enough to keep your nose out of it!
17. Go dancing!  Haha, that's right, I did!  I know it can seem strange and possibly embarrassing but He loves it and will dance right along side of you!  Swallow your pride, He thinks your beautiful even if you "ain't got no rhythm!"
18. Keep your promises.  It goes without saying to keep the promises made to Him... But also to others... The Bible says to give your word only and not swear by anything else, but in order for your word to mean anything you have to keep it... Here's advice I was given once that I always follow "if you aren't sure you can keep a promise, whether it's to keep a secret or it's an action you are promising to take, don't make it in the first place."  I've learned that people usually respect you more for saying you would rather not promise something you can't carry through beforehand rather than finding out you broke the promise afterward.
19. Learn ways to rekindle the romance.  It's inevitable that we will mess-up some part of our relationship with God (and most likely more frequently than we would like) however, if God was looking for perfection he would have stopped before creating the world and all the people in it... He had perfection in heaven with all the angels worshipping, but he wanted something more... So what is it that we can give him that he's longing for? Love, commitment and choice... Relationships are not a one time choice they are a lifetime of work and everyday commitment.  He's intelligent enough to grasp us making mistakes so just push pride aside, say your sorry and repent (which is more than an emotion, it's an action...) turn away from the wrong and turn toward a better direction!

Please remember you're not alone, we all have questions and that's why I share some of the answers and suggestions I come across!  God loves you and if you're good enough for him to love you (which we all are) then you're good enough for anything and anyone!  He has big plans for you!

Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." - NIV