Ah, I hear my lover coming! He is leaping over the mountains, bounding over the hills. My lover is like a swift gazelle or a young stag. Look, there he is behind the wall, looking through the window, peering into the room. My lover said to me, “Rise up, my darling! Come away with me, my fair one! Look, the winter is past, and the rains are over and gone. The flowers are springing up, the season of singing birds has come, and the cooing of turtledoves fills the air. The fig trees are forming young fruit, and the fragrant grapevines are blossoming. Rise up, my darling! Come away with me, my fair one!”
Solomon writes this love sonnet
about the heart of his lover beating ever faster as she contemplates the
arrival of the one she has been waiting to see.
The hope is that they will be together, never again parted. It is Spring, and visions of resurrection
abound; winter is fading, giving way to young blossoms, singing birds, and the
promise of fruit on the vines.
Hibernation is over, it is time to arise!
Even an old dog’s ears stand up
when the scent of the hunt is near. It’s
proof that the eager call of youth never really leaves. I have to confess this “young man” inside of
me loves all the seasons. I love the Spring
and Fall particularly, but all the changes of life are interesting and
blessing. I love the awakening of
things.
What is true in the natural realm
is often a mirror to understand spiritual matters. Looking forward to the call of arise, my darling is at the very center of Christian thought. It is the resurrection to which we aspire,
our lives of death transformed to an eternity of abundant life with the One who
loved us enough to die for us. Who could
deny this is the love story of all love stories?
And in love stories there is one certainty;
it runs deep! Lovers feel both pain and
joy on no small scale. What’s true in human
love runs even deeper in the spiritual realm.
Consider the pathos of Jesus’ statement to Judas when the traitor led
the palace guard to arrest him in Gethsemane:
with
a KISS, Judas…really?
There’s no denying the pain of a love story that ends with heartbreak.
But the other side of that is the happily ever after variety of love. Even that phrase
evokes for an old dog proof that the hunt is worth it…not just for physical
love, or the satisfaction of being with people you love, but the eternal thirst
we all have for being loved, being wanted.
And that is the truth of what is at
the heart of God’s creation purpose. He
created us to love us. Because…God is love.[1]
Let’s
Pray Together:
Father, we are aware that You designed our hearts to love You by loving each other. We are also aware we are sometimes not very good at that. Grant us power to change that this day. Let us be what you are, love in word and deed.
For You Today
You
are loved; you are wanted, and that, unconditionally…no strings!
You
chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road today.
Have a blessed day!
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