Saturday, June 30, 2007

The love song of the redeemed

Grand Sweep Daily Reading: Song of Solomon 1, 2, 3; Psalm 102

Psalm 102:18 (NIV)

18 Let this be written for a future generation, that a people not yet created may praise the Lord.

Song of Solomon 3:1-2a (NIV)

1 All night long on my bed I looked for the one my heart loves; I looked for him but did not find him. 2 I will get up now and go about the city, through its streets and squares; I will search for the one my heart loves.

Good morning!

Have you ever sung a love song? Some of the most popular, celebrated songs are odes to love. Composers write lyrics to capture the heart strings of its listening audience through rhyme and words. Their melodies and words stay with us throughout our life.

We learn how to give and receive love from the moment of our birth. It is emulated by our parents, for better or worse. The infant’s need for love and care are first met by its mother, as she tenderly nurtures and feeds her child. The warmth of a parental hug becomes a comfort that young children desire most. There is a shoulder to cry on when life is hard, and a hand to hold when life is scary. A child receives and emulates the love they experience through example. When acts of love are distorted, meant to harm or deceive, it carries a profound effect upon the life of a young, innocent soul. True love is a sacred gift of God, and much of how we see Him as we grow and mature is fashioned from the life examples of those in our circle of family and friends.

Have you ever been in love?

There is nothing more passionate than the first love of your life. My mother used to tell me stories about how she met my father. She was living in Memphis, Tennessee in an apartment with four of her best friends from high school. They were working downtown in a factory building aircraft for the service men fighting in World War II. She was affectionately labeled “Rosie the Riveter” because she could fit into the tight nose of the aircraft and finish its construction in a tight space. Her very first blind date was with a group of servicemen on leave. She and her girlfriends were waiting together for at the bus stop. As the young men stepped off the bus, Mom noticed a handsome young man, who was much shorter than the rest. She knew almost immediately that she would be paired with him, because she was also very short. She married him and spent the next fifty years of her life with this man before he passed on. Sometimes, we just know how the story will end before the beginning begins.

Have you ever sung a love song to the Lord?

Jesus Christ was the very first love of my heart. As a child, I remember singing the words “Jesus Loves Me! This I know! For the Bible tells me so!” Those words have stuck in my mind throughout the years. The love I have for my Lord is real. As I began to grow and mature, I started to re-examine why I believed in Christ. As any love relationship grows, we find ourselves sometimes in conflict. I’ve always loved my husband but I don’t always like him, especially when he refuses to agree with me. After all, the woman is always right, right? The same holds true with my Savior. As I’ve continued to seek the Lord out in my life, there are times when His Word is hard and what He would ask me to do and what I really want to do are two separate things. Yet, I know that my Jesus knows me better than I know myself. He loves me with a passion and purpose that I simply cannot abandon. His Word continues to grow inside my heart, and the relationship I seek with Him is more important than any other I will ever know in my life.

Every morning, I crawl out of bed in the darkness and find my Bible waiting for me in the study where I pray and write. His Word is a lamp to my sore and sleepy eyes. He lights my path and gives me direction for a new day. I cannot imagine living without Him. I am a better wife, mother and grandmother, because of His love for me. I look for ways to emulate Him in all I say and do. Very often, I miss the mark, but it is not for lack of trying. I wait for Him, because I know my Jesus will be coming back to take me home someday. And I look forward to living in the light of His love forever. It is all I can do to wait patiently for the time when I will see His face and He will take me up in His arms and hold me throughout eternity. He is my heart song, and I live to love Him just a little more each day.

As the generations come and go, we are created to praise the Lord. The love of Christ is like no other love you will ever experience. No matter where you’ve been or how love may have been demonstrated to you, there is an amazing Savior reaching out to you today. He knows your heart, and He sees your pain, your confusion, and your need. He can complete you, if you will trust Him enough to give Him your whole heart. There is no greater love song than the song of the redeemed. Won’t you sing it with me today?

Grace and peace,

Deb Spaulding

www.songofdeborah.com

Pray for: the greatest love song ever written to become a reality in your life! Cry out to Jesus today and He will give you a reason to sing! Our Lord and Savior invites you to experience the greatest love you will ever know, and His love will carry you throughout all eternity. Cry out to Jesus and live!

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© Copyright 2007, Deb Spaulding

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