I feel a bit like an emo kid right now. I noticed that a few of my friends on Facebook were attending an event called Love is the Movement. I checked it out and the idea was to write the word “Love” on your arms on February 13th, a day before the celebration of love, as a way of spreading awareness about depression and suicide. Depression affects 121 Million people worldwide. 15% of the population of deveoped countries suffers from severe depression. Suicide is the second leading cause of death between ages 15-24 and the leading cause of death between ages 25-49. One in 25 Canadians will attempt suicide in their lifetimes.  These are all reasons why I’m writing love on my arms.

There’s a second reason for me to write love on my arms though. It is because of someone who wrote love into his hands, feet, head, and side. It is about a God who so loved us he allowed himself to be horrifically murdered so that his love could break through into this broken world. It is about a God who walked beside me, and carried me, during my early teenage years where at the end of most days I couldn’t see a point to seeing tomorrow.

That’s why I’m writing love on my arms. So that people know they are loved. They are loved by others and they are loved by God.