Daily Question: What is your definition of romantic?

To me, romance isn’t about the big, dramatic gestures you see in movies. It’s not all roses and candlelit dinners — though those can be nice. For me, real romance is quieter and stronger. It’s steady, like a tree with deep roots. I didn’t learn that from a movie or a book. I learned it through faith, through loss, and through moments of unexpected grace.

Real romance is about commitment. It’s choosing, every day, to share your life with someone — not just with words, but with action. I think about how I fell in love back in 2015, and how that love asked more of me than just feelings. It was driving quietly to the courthouse in Marietta on a Tuesday in August to make it official. And it was standing in front of our friends, our family, and God a couple months later to dedicate that marriage to something bigger than ourselves. For me, romance is knowing that love can be both a legal promise and a sacred one — and that both matter.

It’s also about sacrifice — but the kind that’s filled with joy. It’s packing up your life, leaving behind your familiar routines, and starting fresh in a new place — not because you’re forced to, but because the person you love is there. It’s not about losing who you are; it’s about growing into the truest version of yourself in the life you’re building together. It’s in the little things—figuring out the roads, finding a church, setting up a home that belongs to both of you.

And maybe the most powerful part? Romance means second chances. It’s believing that even after heartache and disappointment, God still has more in store for you. It’s being willing to open your heart again, even when it’s been broken before. It’s finding love that doesn’t erase what came before, but honors it — and adds something new and beautiful to your story.

So if you asked me what “romantic” means, I’d say this: It’s a love that’s patient and kind. It’s grounded in faith and lived out in daily choices. It’s not just a feeling — it’s a commitment to love, to serve, and to build a life together that honors God and reflects grace.