TILL DEATH AND BEYOND

I will betroth you to me forever.  Hosea 2: 19

           “I’ll be your friend forever,” many say to one another.  Yet one small comment that leads to a misunderstanding has the potential to fracture the relationship and cause the friendship to erode.

            “I take you as my wife and promise to love you till death do us part.”  Wedding vows are beautiful, and when made in earnest, they can move the guests who hear them spoken to tears.  With such heartfelt emotion, it seems inconceivable that those who voiced such sincere words might become casualties of divorce.

            The best of friendships and the most model marriages are, at best, only reflections of a more perfect love.  God has made a covenant of love with me, just as surely as if there were a ceremony friends and family attended.  In that poignant setting, He spoke these words; “I will betroth you to me forever.”  God is the covenant keeper.  He does not feel trapped by His vows no matter how unfaithful I am.  He is energized by making, and keeping, promises.

            Love extended by imperfect people is often a burst of passionate infatuation.  Proclamations of loyalty made today may be retracted down the road.  Without a connection to the One whose heart never changes, I can easily become cynical and trust no one.  But my Bridegroom feels as passionately about me today as He did ‘before the foundations of the world’ when He planned my life.  If I could walk into a room and catch Him by surprise, I would see Him reach out to me with joyful abandon, like I was the only one in the room.

With all that is in me, I renew my vows to You forever.  Amen