What I pray to become...

"They say there is a young lady in New Haven who is beloved of that Great Being who made and rules the world. They say that He fills her mind with exceeding sweet delight, and that she hardly cares for anything except to meditate on Him. If you present all the world to her, with the richest of its treasures, she disregards it. She is unmindful of any pain or affliction. She has a singular purity in her affections. You could not persuade her to compromise her true Love even if you would give her all the world. She possesses a wonderful sweetness, calmness, and kindness to those around her. She will sometimes go about from place to place, singing sweetly. She seems to be always full of joy and pleasure, and no one knows exactly why. She loves to be alone, walking in the fields and groves, and seems to have Someone invisible always conversing with her."

~Written of Sara Edwards by Jonathan Edwards, her future husband
(from Marriage to a Difficult Man by Rachel Dodd)

My Beloved...

A couple of weeks ago, I was reading Song of Solomon 5 during my Devotion Time.

(For those of you who are wondering why I was reading Song of Solomon, it is because I find great encouragement when picturing myself as the bride and Christ as the Bridegroom. I know many people believe that S.o.S. should be taken literally, but I agree with Paul Washer in that I try to find Christ in every part of Scripture, instead of just the New Testament.)

In verse 10, the bride described her Beloved to the daughters of Jerusalem. This is how she began:

"My beloved is dazzling and ruddy, outstanding among ten thousand." (5:10)

I almost passed over the verse until that last phrase caught my eye.

Outstanding among ten thousand...

As I pondered over the meaning of this statement, I was struck with its significance. In saying that he was outstanding among ten thousand, the bride was claiming that her beloved was the best of the best, her one and only, and the one who captured her heart.

Did I feel that way toward Jesus Christ? Was He outstanding among ten thousand to me?

In other words, if there were ten thousand of the most handsome, gentlemanly, and godly young men lined up alongside Christ and I had the ability to choose one, would my eyes quickly scan over each face until I had come to that of my Beloved Prince or would I flirt with each one, seeing who would love me the most?

In regard to the latter question, most Christians would answer yes, because of course, that's the "right" answer. That's exactly what I said.

But then the Lord spoke to my heart. "Is that the way you are living your life?"

I had to think about that. Did I live my life as if I was solely in love with my Savior or did I enjoy the attraction of young men more?

Most young ladies enjoy the attention of young men because it makes them feel beautiful, loved, or accepted. This feeling or desire to be noticed by the opposite sex is not a bad thing in itself; God gave it to us, as females. He has given it to us so that we may enjoy the attention and love of the Lord first and that of our husbands, if that is His will. This is the danger. As single young women, we must strive to keep ourselves entirely pure by dressing, acting, and speaking only for our Beloved Prince.

As I was pondering over all of this the other day, some questions came to mind for self-evaluation:

1. When I am getting dressed in the morning, who do I think about pleasing with the clothes that I choose to wear?
2. When I am around young men, do I see them as a target to attract or as a brother in Christ?
3. Wherever I am, am I thinking about how to get a young man's attention or how to bring glory to Jesus Christ?

If you find it hard to believe that Jesus Christ could possibly be outstanding among ten thousand, listen (or I guess read, in your case) to who He is. (This is only part of the list from Leslie Ludy's book Sacred Singleness.)

Jesus Christ is....
My Portion, My Maker, My Husband (Isaiah 54:5), My Well-beloved (Song of Solomon 2:16), My Savior (2 Peter 3:18), My Hope (1 Timothy 1:1), My Helper (Hebrews 13:6), My Refiner (Malachi 3:3), My Example (John 13:15), My Teacher (John 3:2), My Shepherd (Psalm 23:1), My Keeper (John 17:12), My Leader (Isaiah 40:11), My Restorer (Psalm 23:3), My Resting Place (Jeremiah 50:6), My Peace (Ephesians 2:14), My Wisdom (1 Corinthians 1:30), My Sanctification (1 Corinthians 1:30), My Righteousness (1 Corinthians 1:30), My Redemption (1 Corinthians 1:30), My All in All (Colossians 3:11)

"My beloved is...outstanding among ten thousand."

Jesus Christ is our Ultimate Bridegroom and He longs for us to come to Him and lay our lives down at His feet. He loves us more than we could ever know, but He desires for us also to fall madly in love with Him.

I want to end with a beautiful song from Kari Jobe. The song is written as the Lord's love song to His bride.



"My beloved is...outstanding among ten thousand."