Dec 02

In the great love poem of the Bible, Song of Songs, there is a description of the bride of the poem, representing all who love the Lord, lying on her bed, sleeping. Nothing could be more ordinary than that.

But in the midst of going about her everyday life, including even the most mundane matter of sleeping, she is always aware of the voice and presence of her lover. So focused is her whole life on the one she loves that even when not conscious of his presence because she is sleeping, yet her heart is still sensitive to him.

"I slept but my heart was awake" (Song of Songs 5:2).

There could hardly be a more poignant expression of what it means to have a living relationship with the Lord. It is not a matter of the mind, for the mind must function through consciousness in order to relate to its surroundings, including people. But here the loved one is aware of her lover's presence even while she is asleep, dramatically illustrating that our relationship with our Lord is a matter of the spirit within us, the heart rather than the mind.

Our relationship with God goes much deeper than thinking about him and relating to him based on what we deduce about his character and being. God goes directly to the heart, where the spirit resides, because that is the deepest part of our being and God, being the deepest thing in existence or that can exist, therefore establishes his relationship with us at that deepest level of existence -- even when we are unaware of it, asleep in our walk through the daily tasks of being human.

Scripture for today: Song of Songs 5:2
Thought for today: My spirit in Christ is always alert to the Spirit of God.
Prayer for today: Awaken my heart, Lord; may it never become deaf to hearing the whispers of your Spirit to my spirit.

DEC 02