Verses for Vessels

The Lord appeared to us in the past, saying:                                                                                         “I have loved you with an everlasting love;
    I have drawn you with unfailing kindness. I will build you up again,
    and you, Virgin Israel, will be rebuilt.
Again you will take up your timbrels
    and go out to dance with the joyful.
Again you will plant vineyards
    on the hills of Samaria;
the farmers will plant them
    and enjoy their fruit" - Jeremiah 31:3-5

Times and timing

Marriage and relationship counsellors would tell you, that if you want to get the best response from a woman you are married to or interested in, you have to create and sustain the right atmosphere. You have to study her, study her surroundings, understand her present priorities and then design a strategy that can arrest her affections from all these other things to yourself, for just one moment. For the impatient, that would be an impossible feat. But to the one who loves genuinely, it is a worthwhile adventure, the reward of which is sweeter than honey and more valuable than gold. If as a determined and prospecting bachelor you can find a way to make this a habit, then you are most certainly on course for a jubilant 'Yes!' Or, if you were married already, well, you would still be most delighted by the outcome. For the woman, more often than not, we find that it is about timing and place; or more precisely, timing and the atmosphere. Many reasons abound for what many consider a moody approach to love, but this is where there occurs that separation between the men and the boys. If you can accept and deliver your expressions of love in the right moment, it can seal the deal; if you can do so in and out of season, even better.

Will this last?

And while she may need the right settings (candle lights, sweet fragrance, a mind at rest et al) to be in a position to respond to your overtures, she would examine your love, across every season because one of her most primal needs is not just love... but security in love. Men can come on and off in love like a light switch, but for women, it's more like preparing a pasta bake... It will take some time. You see, it may take her time to build up the emotion but once she's in love, it would take her perhaps even longer to divest those depths of emotion. This is why she needs to know that you are serious. She needs to know that this would be worth her time. She needs to know that this would last...

Committed

Many times in the bible, we find that the woman is often used as a metaphor for the church, the body of Christ in general, or us as individuals, in our personal walk with Christ. Of course, we do know that God's love for mankind transcends all forms of human love- Eros, filial, platonic etc. His love is way higher; it is agape. The text before us today is not speaking about the types of love that our friends, parents, wives, husbands, or neighbours may show. Every human being who can show us love will at some point cease to be; and with their demise, so their active expression of their loves, however genuine and true.  But God, understanding the deepest need of all our human souls for a love that is genuine, true, and secure for us, offers those wonderful words, as though from a groom to his new bride- "I am Committed forever, and I will show it everyday". That would be my own interpretation of "I have loved you with an everlasting love, and I have drawn you with my loving kindness" .One reason we should trust God is that over and over again, He shows us that He is not a mere talker. He walks the walk...literally. In the subsequent verses He begins to show that love by speaking restoration to Israel-this ruined nation; this dejected bride. 

Build again

Perhaps you are the one to whom the Lord writes those words specifically today. You look at your life and wonder if there is anything left worthy of any man's love. To your left may be devastation; to your right could be debts and devils. Above you may be mountains and ceilings, and beneath could be past regrets and mistakes. Do not fret at all, Jesus, the Man of Galilee, loves you still. When God called you His own, He did so without regard to what you would face, where you may fail, or who you may fail to become. He made a choice to love you no matter what, as long as you live. Our deepest need for a secure love can only be met in Christ who has loved us with an everlasting love. And He wants you to know He is ready and willing to demonstrate that love to you each and everyday. First expression is that He sent His son to die on a rugged Calvary cross for you and me, offering anyone and everyone who believes in Him, everlasting life through Christ. He also gifts us His Holy Spirit who empowers us and helps us as God rebuilds our fallen lives from dust and ashes, to precious stones of glory and grace.

Even now

Will you take up His offer of this everlasting love? Will you give Him a chance to rebuild your testimony, again. If you do, all the promises of the text above will be yours by Christ Jesus. He will build you up again. You will sing with joy, again. You will plant vineyards (do great things), again. You will enjoy their fruits, again. I wouldn't hold out too long. You can trust His everlasting affection and genuine care.... beginning now.

Prayer: Dear Lord, I need you. O how deeply I need your love. Free my fretful heart to trust in your love for me. Let me know your loving kindness each and everyday. Rebuild, restore and renew my heart in your great love, now and always. Amen.