Who doesn’t love a good romantic story? I am a sucker for them. Most of the time I would rather watch a rom-com than an action movie — my all time favourite is The Wedding Planner!
As I have gotten older, I have also enjoyed reading love stories in books. This one time I read a love story that changed my view on love. In the book the relationship started off well, very well, but then in the first few chapters everything fell apart. All hope was lost for the relationship to get back together to how it use to be, but of course you hope they will, so you keep reading. About three-quarters through, he does everything he can to prove his love to her. But still she won’t come back to him. Then in the last chapter, he rides in on a white horse and takes her to be with him forever.
How romantic right?!
You know what the title of that book was? The Bible.
Ya, I see you over there all surprised!
When I recognized the Bible was more like a love story, I began to see it more than just a book of rules and stories that happened a very long time ago and were therefore not applicable to my life. Somewhere along the way we have misinterpreted the true essence of the Bible. The Bible is God’s love letter to us. God, this all knowing, all powerful being took time and effort to write out His love for us. A love letter directly to me. A love letter TO YOU and for you. When I began to realize this, I can’t even explain how life altering this was for me, my heart and my life!
So, how come we never tire of a good love story? Maybe it’s the chase that we see, the flirting between male and female. Maybe it’s that we can sometimes picture ourselves in the love story. When I learned that scripture was the unveiling of God’s love for us, I realized that that every love story we see, read and hear about, is an echo of the Great Love Story of how Jesus Christ loves us.
Isaiah 62:3-5 says “You shall be a crown of beauty in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of your God. You shall no more be termed Forsaken, and your land shall no more be termed Desolate, but you shall be called Hephzibah, (which means my delight is in her) and Beulah (which means the bride of God.) For as a young man marries a young woman…and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you.”
I love what Isaiah says here because it shows how every love story is a reflection of God’s love for us. That no matter your relationship status we are God’s bride.
In fact, Jesus is referred to as the bridegroom several times throughout the Bible and calls US his bride! What’s a bridegroom you ask? It basically means the Bride’s Groom. Today, the name bridegroom is commonly shortened to just groom.
In John 3:29 it says that “the bride belongs only to the bridegroom.”
And in Revelation it says that there will be the marriage supper of the lamb, when Christ comes again. God is in a relentless pursuit to get us, his bride, back to himself. This is the essence of the Biblical narrative, and is the reality of our lives today.
Guys! We are in the biggest love story right now.
A relentless lover is pursuing you!
He wants you.
He gave up everything to be with you.
Jesus has promised to walk life with us in the ups and downs as a bride & groom commit to do.
He chose you and pursued you before you even wanted him.
You are loved by someone who died to get to know you.
Romans 5:8 says “but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us.”
When we realize this, like really come to understand this, it has the power to change our whole out look on life. When we realize who we are in Christ, his beloved, his treasured possession, his children, his bride, his masterpiece, his image; we can embrace God’s purpose for us and live out of this fullness. Growing up in school I wish I had known this.
Growing up in church, I understood that God loved me, but I was still convinced that my friends or a boy could give me something that God couldn’t. Therefore, when my friends ditched me and didn’t care to invite me, or when a boy I thought was “the one” did not reciprocate the same feelings, I was left defeated and sobbing ugly tears because I was convinced that by hanging out with friends, and having a boy like me increased my worth.
Maybe you’re in a similar spot right now. Whether you grew up hearing about Jesus all the time or want nothing to do with God. Perhaps you are constantly striving to be included, feel wanted, get that attention, but for some reason you feel even more empty and exhausted from the chase. I mean come on, if you don’t have any friends or as many friends as that girl does and don’t hang out with them like every day there must be something wrong with you. Nobody must like you. You must be a bad friend. Or when everyone around you seems to be dating and you believe that you will forever be alone.
These are the lies that I believed and sometimes still do. I’d like to think that I’m not the only one, but that’s what the devil does. He makes you feel alone and forget the love of your Saviour.
The only way I could fight these lies was to combat them with the truth.
So I started reading my Bible (I know it seems cliche, but honestly viewing the Bible differently and pushing myself to open it each day has deepened my relationship with Jesus) and studying it like I had never done before. Slowly, over time I began to believe its truths. Even if I didn’t feel different and kept on stumbling, the Holy Spirit began to whisper truth to me that whether I was wanted by a boy or not, Jesus wanted my heart. The king of the universe, the creator of everything wanted me and loves me; enough to send Him to the cross.
So now what? If you’re asking yourself where you should go from this, here are some suggestions.
Read Spoken For by Robin Jones Gunn and Alyssa Bethke
Open up His love letter to you (aka the Bible). And if you don’t know where to start I recommend starting in John or James found in the New Testament.
Speak the truth over yourself! Declare this over to yourself (I know it may seem awkward to talk to yourself, but just do it) “I am pursued my God. I am wanted by Him. I am loved by God.”
Read the first post found here https://beautifullylovedca.wordpress.com/2017/07/30/blog/ and the third post coming soon.
Your friend, Daysha
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