There are very few things I know a lot about. I could talk for hours about Glee and hockey, hippopotamuses and Lord of the Rings, but when it comes to some things I know absolutely nothing about it. My biggest area of ignorance is the big "L" word: love.
Throughout many dating endeavors and relationships, I have tried to concoct my own version of the word love. I have been trying to wrap my mind around what that looks like, what it means, how it acts, what to do with it, but have come up very short. Understanding love is not easy when you have never truly been in a deep, passionate, all encompassing love. Unfortunately, I have not experienced that but I greatly desire to.
That being said, over the last year, God has conveniently placed church services in my life that directly correlate to the topic of real love. I have been blowing it off and ignoring it because I thought I knew better (what a joke, right?!) but today was the moment that finally broke through to me. As a new attendee to Mission Community Church, the last sermon expected at a 7,000+ church was not in regards to Song of Songs, however, that is exactly what I got this morning.
During the 30 minutes of digging in to the first chapter of Song of Songs, I got a clearer and more impactful glimpse of what a beautiful and pure relationship looks like than I have ever seen in every Nicholas Sparks book combined. At first glance, one would not think being "likened as a mare" is a compliment, or even a tad bit sexy, but when you truly delve in to the beauty and passion of the phrasing it is mind boggling. I want to love and be loved the way that Solomon does with his Beloved. I want to find a man that looks at me through the eyes of his wisdom, sensitivity, and beauty.
The sermon went even further than the compliments, and the verbal displays of love. It explained the importance of exclusivity. While this sounds like something we all learned in elementary school, our society has belittled the exclusive aspect of relationships. We are so caught up in "just talking" or "not labeling" what we are, and that completely degrades the sanctity of love and marriage. Honoring and cherishing just one person is so beautiful, and yet it seems to be so archaic. Hearing that certainly was a slap in the face because I have fallen guilty of ignoring it's importance.
This leads to the last point that was made which was in regard to the Daughters of Jerusalem in the text. The role they play in the love story is (how the Pastor put it) "the back up singers". They come behind you and your lover and support you, encourage you, praise you, chastise you, and glorify the God centered relationship you have built. I do not think I have ever done this for the people I call my closest friends, and for that, I am deeply and truly sorry. But from this day forward I strive to be that support to my loved ones, and hope to encourage them to be that for me.
One monumental moment does not all of a sudden morph me in to the model example of love. But I am so grateful for the revelation that has happened, and for God placing this time in my path. I cannot wait for the day that I have a love like Solomon so wonderfully exemplified.
