While browsing in a charity shop, Hannah, my daughter, spotted a wedding dress. She tried it on. The whole shop froze. It was perfect. “Mum?” she beamed at me, “What do you think?”
Mean mother that I am, I made her spend a whole hour looking at photos of it on her phone to be absolutely certain this was the one. An hour and five minutes later, we emerged as the proud owners. A pang of sadness hit me, however, because now we would never have the excitement of going wedding dress shopping. Fun though it would have been, we didn’t need to keep searching for the perfect item which we’d already found.
Solomon describes the end of an even more important search: “for the one my heart loves” (Song of Songs 3:1). Although he was thinking of the love between couples, there are echoes here of our spiritual searching, which ends when we find Christ. “I found the one my heart loves. I held him and would not let him go” (v. 4).
Sometimes the excitement and soul-satisfaction of knowing Jesus fades over time. We search again for a new thrill. But like the lovers in this passage, once we’ve found Jesus, our search has stopped. Instead, we can echo the passionate single-mindedness of holding Him and never letting go!
If you feel like you’re lacking something today, cling even tighter to Jesus. There’s endless fulfilment and joy to be found in getting to know the One our hearts love.
By Debbi Fralick
REFLECT & PRAY
What do you find yourself searching for at the moment? How does clinging to Jesus bring satisfaction to even your deepest needs?
Jesus, You are the One my heart loves. Help me experience the excitement and satisfaction of living each day in Your presence.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
Over the centuries, the Song of Solomon (Song of Songs) has been a challenge to Bible scholars, resulting in a variety of interpretations of this unique portion of Scripture. Because of the intimacy of this inspired poetry, some Jewish scholars have read it as an allegory describing the relationship between God and Israel. As such, parts of Song of Solomon are read today at Passover—the spring feast celebrating God’s rescuing love for Israel. Some Christian scholars (beginning with early church father Origen) have understood it to be picturing Christ and the church. Today, some scholars see the Song more literally—celebrating the love shared by a husband and wife within the framework of marriage. It’s a mysterious book that celebrates the beauty of love.
Bill Crowder
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