Sunday, September 29, 2013

More Than A Wedding Day

Linda Thomas is our guest blogger today--what a treat. She brings us her message, an analogy of marriage. All the girly-things we love and being the bride of Christ...a relationship that should be growing stronger every day. 

More Than A Wedding Day

Who doesn't love a beautiful, romantic wedding? Especially us girls! I, for one, am a complete girly-girl. I love all the foo-foo, frilly, feminine things that make being female such FUN. (Alliteration overkill?) Oh well!

From high tea at the Grand Floridian...

 



...to princess parties and ballet...


 


to my fairytale wedding day on a Caribbean island…


 


I simply adore being a girl. In fact, next to Christmas, my favorite holiday is Valentine's Day; because in my girly ways I love the whole idea of love itself.

But candidly, if I were to hang my hat on this thinking, it would not be healthy at all. Being in love with love doesn't bode well for enduring the relational difficulties and conflict that are sure to arise. To put it bluntly, a lover of love won't care as much about the person as much as what that person can do for them.

As I was lunching with a friend this week, she made a sweet and meaningful analogy about our relationship with Christ. In a nutshell, it's this:

Coming to faith in Christ = wedding day
Ongoing relationship with Christ = marriage

Frequently it seems many Christians associate their testimony with their "wedding day" when they first came to Christ. But in reality, we are to have an ongoing testimony - a marriage relationship with Christ - that will continue to grow and thrive and transform us over time.

Now to be fair, it's absolutely a blast, and even important, to reflect on our "wedding day" when we came to Christ. Just as those of us who are married reflect on our wedding day - sometimes in an effort to rekindle that first love we had for one another. But let's also make sure we aren't simply in love with love where Christ is concerned. Ask yourself:

Am I in this relationship because of what Jesus can do for me?
When I do what he asks of me, do I expect him to do something good for me in return?
When things go poorly, do I turn my back on him?
Am I striving to cultivate a relationship with Jesus; to really know him more?

If our only testimony is to tout how awesome our wedding day was, it's time to get busy building the testimony of our marriage relationship. After all, it's during the daily ups and downs; joys and heartaches; victories and failures where true intimacy happens - and the true love story comes to life. Our relationship with Jesus is to be an ongoing testimony of an on-fire love life. And that's what this girly girl finds both irresistibly attractive and delightfully satisfying about life with Jesus. It's so much more than a wedding day...

I am overwhelmed with joy in the LORD my God! For he has dressed me with the clothing of salvation and draped me in a robe of righteousness. I am like a bride with her jewels. {Isaiah 61:10}


Linda


Linda Thomas is the author of a 6-week Bible study titled, In Step with the Spirit – A life of passion,power, and purpose. Having been set free from decades of sin and shame, Linda’s love for God has developed into an unwavering commitment to understand and apply God’s word with simplicity to the real, and often difficult, circumstances of life. She resides in Indianapolis, IN, with her husband Mick; and is a loving mom and stepmom to Jensen (now serving in the U.S. Air Force), Jordan, Noelle, Ben, and Lauren.

 


3 comments:

  1. Beautiful reminder of His ongoing goodness and grace. Thank you, Linda and Jeanne!

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  2. Thanks so much, Vonda! Appreciate you.

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  3. Thank you, Vonda for stopping in :)

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