Song of Solomon 8:7
Many waters cannot quench love; rivers cannot wash it away.
"You're boring!"
The commercial on T.V. started off by showing a young woman telling her boyfriend that he was...boring.
In comes credit card advertisement with the solution.
You don't have to be boring anymore! The next few scenes portray the young man living it up with his credit card rewards, no longer the boring man he used to be. All to win back the heart of the witch who just stomped on it.
Really? I mean....really?
Commercials like this absolutely kill me. Not so much of the ridiculous content that they advertise, but more so, because they reflect the heart of our culture. A culture so afraid of rejection, afraid to be singled out, and so utterly desperate just to fit in. No matter the cost.
A culture willing to bend and fit into any mold, if only to be loved and accepted, if only to be valued.
It breaks my heart to see this theme resonating on T.V., but even more so in the world around me. Young people I hear from every day through emails, over phone conversations, at talks, and in sessions...longing to be loved, willing to give up everything...even their very self.
One thing I love about my dating relationship with John is that we were always real with each other. Never trying to be something or someone we were not. We both believed with all our hearts that one of the keys to finding true love was in being real. When the person standing before you is completely transparent...you know your love is based on truth, because it's founded on what is actually there...rather than what you wish, hope, or dream could be there.
There were so many things about me that John loved, things I never imagined someone could ever love. My clammy hands. My frizzy curls. My need to have deep conversations all hours of the day and night. But those were the things that made me...me...and that is what he fell in love with. He loved me for who I was, not for who he wanted me to be. And for the rest of our lives in marriage...I am freed to be myself. Completely, wholly, and transparently me.
Why settle for a relationship in which you are asked to be someone you are not? Why settle for hiding the parts of you that make you transparent, real, and authentically you. Why become someone else to find love, when true love can find you...just for being you. A love that cannot be quenched, a love that can never be washed away.
Embrace your God-created self. Every part of it. From your body type, to your spirituality. From your emotional temperament to your silly quirks. From your convictions to your hobbies. It's okay to be real...because, though you risk rejection...it's the only way that you can experience true and complete love.
And that kind of love....is priceless.
I loved reading this... It reaffirms one of the most important things that I have always felt about my relationship with my husband (as of the 21st! Yep, we're newlyweds...). I felt like we always work, despite our stark differences (that I feel just act to complement each other), we never "played games" or put on an act, it was a baring of souls as we started our journey to become one, whole and perfect.
ReplyDeleteSuch a blessing to have such a good relationship. May god bless you and your husband as you seek to honor him. Thanks for reading!
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