Now what?

THE HOUND OF HEAVEN
By Francis Thompson

I fled him, down the nights and down the days; I fled him, down the arches of the years; I fled him, down the labyrinthine ways of my own mind; and in the mist of tears I hid from him… He tried romantic love, he tried the love of children, he tried nature, while still with unhurrying chase, and unperturbed pace, deliberate speed, majestic instancy, came on the following feet… at last the hound chases him to earth. He hears a voice around him, "Like a bursting sea," which says: "All which I took from thee I did but take, not for thy harms, but just that thou shouldst seek it in my arms, all which thy child's mistake fancies as lost, I have stored for thee at home; Rise, clasp my hand, and come!"

"Not for thy harms." Like a skilled surgeon, God may have to hurt us, but he will never harm us, his object is wholeness.

I have learned that nothing can be more satisfying than being consumed by His great love. Amidst all that is happening, in quietness and TRUST will be my strength. Four years ago, I confessed to surrender my ALL to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. I am His, my heart, mind, body, soul & strength. I cannot give my heart away, for it is not MINE to give. From glory to glory, I'm learning to use His tools in order to raise up women after His own heart.



Wisdom is simply the ownership of insight.

Eugene Peterson describes wisdom as "the art of living skillfully in whatever actual conditions we find ourselves."

I like to think that the relationship between wisdom and romance is like the one between a string and a kite. Romantic love is the kite that catches the wind and tenaciously heads for the sky; wisdom is the string that tugs downward holding it back. The tension is real, but healthy.
It's not enough to have romantic feelings. Anyone can do that! Long-lasting romance needs practical, common-sense wisdom that knows when to let the wind of feelings carry us higher and when to pull back. When to express our emotions and when to keep quiet. When to open our hearts and when to rein them in.

John Calvin wrote, "The evil in our desire typically does not lie in what we want, but in that we want it too much."

Time is God's way of keeping everything from happening all at once.