I remember, even as a little girl, being afraid of commitment. Afraid to commit to brushing my teeth everyday (gross I know). Afraid to commit to getting up everyday at the same time, and especially afraid to commit to friendships. Not because someone had necessarily MADE me afraid but rather that I knew the possibilities. That as people get older they move on, everything isn’t always how it seems, and sometimes relationships just don’t work out. It wasn’t that I didn’t believe in the idea of love because I think most little girls do.
From wishing their prince will come to dressing up as a princess and dancing around the house as you make your brother, David, “walk you down” the black-and-white tiled hallway dressed as a bride(silly I know).
It was more that I didn’t believe in the “realistic” aspect of love. Like, waking up to the same person everyday and still loving them as much as you did the day before, even after 20 years of being together. Or, going through circumstances as painful as being married to the person that means so much and then them becoming paralyzed from the waist down..
It’s enough to make anyone run for the hills, throw up their hands, and yell, “What’s the point?”
It wasn’t until I heard the story of the eagle that I finally understood.
“When the female knows a male is interested, she leads him on a chase through the skies, swooping and diving and soaring high above the hills. When the chase is nearly over, she flies as high as she can and flips onto her back, free-falling toward the ground. It is the male’s job to place his body over hers and grasp her talons, flapping his wings with all his might to keep her from certain death. Moments before they hit the ground, the female pulls out of the dive and circles the male. Because he had been willing to stay even unto death, he will have proven himself a mate. The eagles are joined from life from that point on.”
Meaning, the male eagle had proven that he was in it for the long run. No matter what life threw at them, he would hold on to her, regardless of the circumstances. In the same way, God stretched out his arms and died a certain death for us.
Therefore, when I read that I couldn’t help but be astonished at the love story God had placed in nature to show us of the loyalty and faithfulness he desires in a marriage. It made me realize, that love really isn’t a feeling. Yet, you can be, “in love.” But “to love” is so much more important. It’s that choice to put someone else before yourself, no matter the cost.
Oftentimes, we go back and first. Not sure of how we’re living. Thinking we might love God when he answers our prayers but then not really sure when the situation is difficult.
Only able to dance in the sunshine but not the rain.
Could thing Jesus can accept and repair us.
Anything we lose is not worth the cost.
elizabethstown 