The Great Romance.

I really should be studying for, what will be, the most heinous test I've ever taken but this has really been on my heart lately...and I feel pressed to write and just lay it out there for you readers. I hope it speaks to you in some way.

"Therefore, behold, I will allure her,

and bring her into the wilderness,

and speak tenderly to her.

And I will betroth you to me forever. I will betroth you to me in righteousness and in justice, in steadfast love and in mercy. I will betroth you to me in faithfulness. And you shall know the Lord."

-Hosea 2:14, 19-20 ESV

With Valentine's day less than a week away, I am finding myself getting caught up in this commercial holiday as much as the next person...there's lots of pink, new lines of perfume, clever greeting cards, and yes, even chocolate. It's a rather charming time of the year, might I say. Though, it is not one of my favorite holidays.

Nevertheless, I dare say that it is just as easy for couples and singles alike to dwell on this holiday for far more than what it's worth. If you're like me, I needed to be reminded of that this week. Regardless of whether or not you have a special someone to share the holiday with, I hope you can take away something from this post to remember this week.

Most of you know what the book of Hosea is about. It's a love story--a romance, if you will. It parallels Hosea's marriage to the unfaithful Gomer to God's covenant with the rebellious Israel.

Just as Gomer got caught up in her other lovers, so do we. We waste time blindly seducing lovers of our own (whether it be individuals, dreams, money, etc.) that don't include the Ultimate Romance. This is unfaithfulness through idolatry--it's adultery. Meanwhile, the betrayed Hosea waits on Gomer, and continues to pursue her, just as God still pursues us. And the best part about it, is God still girdles us in his ever-loving embrace with excitement, even though He knows our hearts still wander.

Not only are we graciously accepted back into communion with Him, but He makes us right again. As if we did no wrong. This is the sweet, intimate, constant, no-strings-attached, Great Romance that all of our hearts long for.

I do not have a valentine this year but thinking back on past years, I am thankful for that. But for those of you that do have a valentine i have only this to say: I'm sure you are grateful for your significant other and they are all you could ever ask for and are beyond blessed by them. But if you don't strive to keep The Great Romance at the center of your attention, as a couple and as individuals, then you're missing something, and will never be able to experience the fullness of love that God intends for you. And at the end of the day, that person is just one of the vessels that God has chosen to reveal His sweet love to you. They are just one of the countless ways that He romances you.

I close this letter to you readers with gratefulness and awe. I hope you have a blessed week full of Romance and romance alike, and I pray that you would find yourself in the arms of the Faithful One.

"Behold You have come over the hills, upon the mountain
To me, You will run
My Beloved, You've captured my heart

Won't You dance with me
Oh, Lover of my soul
To the song of all songs?

With You I will go
You are my Love, You are my Fair One
The winter has passed and the springtime has come

Romance me
Oh, Lover of my soul
To the song of all songs"

How amazing it is to me, that He loves our dirty, filthy, tainted souls.