We’re here at debrief and I’m supposed to write about what God has taught me during this first month of the race. Honestly I have learned a lot about myself and I have learned about how much God loves us. This month I have been studying Song of Songs and learning how to love my wife deeper. I honestly didn’t think that was possible until I really started studying it. I asked God how I was going to practically apply what He was going to be teaching me and His answer was simple: “Write a song.”
Now I have written love notes to Bethany before, but nothing like what Solomon wrote to His love in Song of Songs. Nevertheless I began to study and write. I would read a chapter a day and write a few things down after I got done reading. I finished reading the 8 chapters in a week and a half, but I couldn’t get enough. I reread it twice and finally finished my song to Bethany two days before we left Sombor.
Now I’m not going to share it with you all, but I will share the bigger picture takeaways from the Bible study part of this exercise.
1.) God knows everything about us. The story of Solomon’s love for his wife is a picture of God’s love for us as well. The thing that struck me most about Solomon’s letters to his wife were how detailed they were about her and her lifestyle. He knew every inch of her inside and out. In the same way God knows every inch of us and still chooses to love us as hard as He does.
2.) The attraction to Solomon wasn’t his looks or his status, but his character. The wife mentions in her letters his character and how he treats her. According to her that is what the daughters of Israel admire most about him. It causes me to reflect on my character and wonder what parts need to be refined into a character like Solomon’s. Not that I want to be famous among nations for it like Solomon was, but I do want to be famous to one woman for it.
3.) The final thing I learned from my study of this book is that not everything in it is about marriage. There are other truths in it that can be applied to other things as well. For example, there’s a story the wife tells of Solomon coming to her door and leaving after she didn’t answer quick enough. She went after him and was beaten by guards in the courtyard. She asked the women of Israel to help her find him. Maybe it’s just the context of the World Race, but to me that sounds a lot like living in Christian community. We are all striving to reach the same Man, and we sometimes don’t answer quick enough, and sometimes we need other people to help us reach where He wants us to go. We should also pursue Him relentlessly just like the wife did for Solomon.
I hope this has been encouraging to you in someway or another. We are excited to see where God takes us in Romania and what new things He will teach us there.
