I CAN’T verify the accuracy of the statistics, but they certainly make for interesting reading. If they are correct, shoppers aged 16-24 were at the forefront of those likely to splash out on Valentines Day this year, with men planning to spend more than women on ‘the love of their life’.

It would also appear that the UK ranks second only to Hong Kong in average Valentine’s Day spending. I await to see what the actual figures will finally reveal.

Valentine’s Day occupies a prominent position in our national calendar so much so that a respected historian has suggested that it is one of the few saints’ days the average person could identify with any confidence. All of which raises the question as to why someone who is thought to have been martyred in the third century could have such an influence on our culture today.

I believe it’s because Valentine’s Day highlights the enduring power of romantic love, something Garry Chapman looks at in his well-known book ‘The Five Love Languages’. At its peak he writes, the ‘in love’ experience can be ‘euphoric’ so much so that spending time with your loved one can be like playing in the anteroom of heaven!

‘The Five Love Languages’ is an amazing tool. Over the years my wife and I have encouraged lots of couples to read it when they were preparing to get married or when they were struggling in their relationship. It has proved transformative.

Chapman believes each one of us has a “love tank” that needs to be filled, and so it’s important that we find the most appropriate way to show people we love them. This will mean that we must figure out their personal ‘love language’ so that we can shape the way we react to them. Chapman has identified five: words of affirmation, quality time, gifts, acts of service and physical touch. You may think of more.

Having said that we devalue the meaning of ‘love’ when we restrict it to romantic love alone. Love is a much broader concept which is why Jesus was able to say that we should even love our enemies.

Like many others I find it helpful to reflect on a little Greek word that the early church seems to have made its own. ‘Agape’ is not based on feelings, attraction, or even family ties. It is not an emotional high but a determination to do all you can to enrich the lives of others no matter how they treat you because you always want the best for them.

Christians believe that this is the kind of love God has for us. and is seen most clearly in Jesus’ sacrificial death on the cross. This is why I’ve often said that it would be good to have an annual ‘Agape Day’ so that we can be reminded how we should treat each other, whether we’re ‘starry-eyed lovers’ or bitter enemies.