According to the company, they make 80 million of them every day in Pennsylvania, California, and Virginia factories.  That computes to about a billion every 125 days (or every four months).  We have a world population of six billion, 653 million, 270 thousand folks.  Those numbers are pretty big.  So, you can figure that even going full tilt it would take the Hershey company two solid years, just to make enough Hershey kisses for every person on earth to have just one.

 Most people love chocolate.  Some people love chocolate more than they care for people.  Most people spend more on chocolate than they bring as an offering to God because they don't think of saying thank you. 

I must admit I'm not very good at thank you's to the Lord.  I didn't say, "Come, Lord Jesus, be our guest --" before popping into my mouth my valentine kiss.  The milk chocolate after-taste still lingers, but like a peck, smack, smooch, or, as my granddaughters say, "kissy" from my loved ones, they come and go pretty quickly.  It exceeds comprehension that God should have loved us without us ever loving him, thanking him, praising or worshipping him first. 

 You would think the Creator behind chocolate and color and romance and emotion would deserve our gratitude before risking His love upon us.  Love is a risk, isn't it?  Giving your heart to someone if the affection isn't returned is taking a chance on it being broken. 

Giving your Son to the world that would crucify Him was an act of divine love inconsistent with caution, prudence, or even good sense.  God didn't make any pre-nuptial agreement.  He didn't protect Himself.  He loved us first.  He gave His life for billions of people, and billions still need him.  The love of God in Christ is not a confection.  It is not just an endearment or sweet nothing.  It is the act of the sacrifice of God's own Son.  That same book of First John says, "This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us."  And again, "This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.  This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins."

 Every day is Valentine's Day. 

St. Valentine was a Christian martyr of the third century who surrendered his life because he believed in Jesus as his Savior.  We don't know much of this Christian.  But we know this: He loved God because Christ first love him.  Valentine, like you and me, is only one of billions on earth.  But Christ gave his life for each of us -- an unfailing love which will never lose its taste, its power, or its objective - not to win your love for Him, but to bring you the passion of the Christ and the pure love of the Gospel.  Then you can say with devotion to him, "He indeed loved me first."