“I will betroth you to Me forever; Yes, I will betroth you to Me in righteousness and justice, in lovingkindness and mercy; I will betroth you to Me in faithfulness, and you shall know the Lord. ” Hosea 2:19-20
Your words to Israel are for me, too. I, too, hold the promise of forever buried as the undercurrent of my story. You covenant with me, God.
I adore You, Father, whose commitment rests on who You are and not on what I’m not. You marry all of me and this union means I inherit all of You. I come flesh-laden and You whisper forever over that which deserves not even to stand in Your goodness for one day.
Empty-handed as I enter, I leave overwhelmed by the fullness You have offered this pauper.
Because of You, I am rich. Righteousness, justice, lovingkindness, mercy and faithfulness spill over the sides of the marriage cup You have offered me. My small mind can’t comprehend all the rooms of Your house.
You wash over me with abundance and all You ask of me is my “yes.”
I adore You, Father of forever.
I lived parched, temporal — and You took this dowry and exchanged it for a bounty I can but barely comprehend. All the goodness of life and eternity is wrapped up in Your person and that Person has stooped, humbly, for my partaking.
I am overcome by You, Father. And Groom.
You tie righteousness and justice to lovingkindness and mercy and I am sobered by this pairing. You know best what the world needs most and You deliver in a way the world can’t understand.
I barely understand You, God, but I want You. I want to know this foreign love You offer, this marriage offering. I want to marry myself to all that is You and become one with that which overshadows me and gives me a new name.
I love You, God of exchange. Everyday exchange.
These gifts of Your hand — righteousness, justice, lovingkindness, mercy, faithfulness — are simply foreshadowings for the real thing. The best thing. The bedrock of this marriage.
You promise that I would know You.
You marry me so that I might know You.
You dress me up in white and give me a new name. You prepare the path before Me and even give strength to my weak “yes” all for one thing. The only thing. The thing for which I was made. The thing that makes my heart soar and sets all underneath it into position in my life.
The greatest weight of Your offer is this: that I might know You.
I adore You, God who searches me and knows me and stares deeply into my deep so that You might call me forth … to know You.
You marry me. All of me. All so that I might know You.
I love You, God who has given me access.
First photo compliments of Cherish Andrea Photography.
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So what do I do with these posts, you ask, other than just read them? First, if you haven’t yet, read: Why I Adore and Morning Chai, Explained to give you a context for this little space on my blog.
If you are compelled, I invite you to participate. Set up a space and time in your own life to begin adoring. Over laundry or dinner dishes, on your commute to work, or in the wee morning hours — five or ten minutes is a great start. You can use the verse I list here every day or two as a launch pad for your own adoration. (Showing Up gives you some practicals.)
Then practice praise.
I promise your weary soul won’t regret it.
You can see all of the Morning Chai posts with this link: http://www.EveryBitterThingisSweet.com/posts/chai/ and you can easily subscribe to these devotional meditations as they are delivered, by using this feed: http://www.EveryBitterThingisSweet.com/posts/chai/feed or by entering your email address in the second box on the right-hand side.
