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Reality of Romance — Week 2 “Therefore I am now going to allure her; I will lead her into the desert and speak tenderly to her”(Hosea 2:14, NIV). It was a beautiful day in my own desert location when I received a most welcome telephone call from my sweetheart of 47 years. Just to hear the sound of his voice made me wait with great anticipation for his every spoken word. I felt my body relax knowing that I could spend this sweet moment in conversation, and I was hoping he had called with an invitation to lunch. So I was simply delighted by his personal request for me to sit down with him and dine. I know that it may sound funny to hear a woman speak of her long-time companion as though she were still a teenager in love, but I can only say that as the years pass by, I cherish every moment with him more than ever before. He proceeded to tell me where we would have lunch, and then he asked me where I was in regard to his location for our meal. I quickly told him I was about a thirty-minute drive from him, but I would be there as soon as possible. He knows that I can be a master at taking the shortest, quickest route, so the drive would not be an obstacle. On my way to the restaurant, I was thinking about everything I wanted to tell him and excited to hear every word he would be sharing with me. As I was making my way, the phone rang again, and I just knew that he was checking to see how close I was getting to our rendezvous. Much to my surprise, however, he said, “Honey, I just decided to go ahead and eat, and I’m going to have to leave now.” I was simply heartbroken that he wasn’t going to wait for me and even more so, he seemed not to realize how very disappointed I was in his rushing away. Then I knew I had to get home so I could spend some time in prayer and tell the Lord on him.
The scripture found in Hosea 2:6, 7 speaks of how God brings us to our senses. It says, “Therefore, I will block her path with thornbushes; I will wall her in so that she cannot find her way. She will chase after her lovers but not catch them; she will look to them but not find them” (NIV). God knows how to get our attention, ladies, because He placed in us a desire for love and intimacy. By blocking the earthly fulfillment of that need, He so lovingly reminded me that He was the pursuer of my heart; He had felt the same heartache when I had to rush on through the day, not even thinking of my offense to Him. The Word of the Lord in Hosea, verses 16 and 19 says, “‘In that day,’ declares the Lord, ‘you will call me “my husband;” you will no longer call me “my master”. . . . I will betroth you to me forever; I will betroth you in righteousness and justice, in love and compassion’” (NIV). Thank you, loving Savior, for tenderly bringing me back to You, my First Love. |
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As I arrived home, I quickly ran to my favorite place to pray and began telling the Lord how hurt I was about my husband’s broken invitation. All of a sudden, without waiting, the Lord interrupted me to say, “Sharon, do you remember when I have pulled at your heartstrings to come aside with Me to our private place of communion and you said you would come? Instead, you let other things crowd in and you never came.” I said, “Yes, Lord, I remember all the times I have broken Your heart because I would not wait for our intimate time together.”