The Beloved

Song of Solomon Arise , my love, my beautiful one, and come away....Have you seen Him whom my soul loves?...What is that coming up from the wilderness like columns of smoke, perfumed with myrrh and frankincense, with all the fragrant powders of a merchant?

Albuquerque New Mexico to Amarillo Texas to Oklahoma City Oklahoma to Little Rock Arkansas to Memphis Tennessee to Wildwood Georgia to Chattanooga....in one very long day. Twenty one hours on the road. Home for one day and then drove to Cincinnati Ohio. I have so much to do at home. The house is dusty, the plants are heat stressed, the leaves are falling on the grass. I decided to come to Cincinnati with Ken for some rest. He is in orientation for the next two days and I am laying in the most comfortable bed watching the rain and doing, well nothing. And that is exactly what I needed. No shopping, no cleaning, no raking, no house project, no nursing.

Have you seen Him whom my soul loves?

Life is busy for us. Wonderful. Adventurous. Sometimes chaotic. And when I find that I have stretched myself too thin I look to the Rock from whence I was hewn. I need to be filled up, to find rest, to come away with my Beloved. My Savior. My God.


For Your love is better than wine; Your anointing oils are fragrant; Your name is oil poured out...The King has brought me into His chambers. We will exult and rejoice in You; we will extol Your love more than wine; rightly do they love You.

I could not go another day without some time spent with the lover of my soul. I can no longer function, or breathe without tuning out everything else and listening only to the sound of His voice, the reading of His Word, His name on my lips and His thoughts in my heart.

Sustain me with raisins; refresh me with apples, for I am sick with love. The voice of my Beloved! Behold, He comes, leaping over the mountains, bounding over the hills. My Beloved is like a gazelle or a young stag. Behold, there He stands behind our wall, gazing through the windows, looking through the lattice.

Sometimes I find myself so captured by living, working, gardening, family and friends.... I am so grateful that I have this wonderful life but if I forget where that comes from....if I neglect Him, the most important thing, then that is just a tragedy.

I will rise now and go about the city, in the street and in the squares; I will see Him whom my soul loves...Have you seen Him whom my soul loves?

Scarcely had I passed them when I found Him whom my soul loves. I held him, and would not Him go...Behold You are beautiful my love, You are beautiful. You have captivated my heart. How much better is Your love than wine, and the fragrance of Your oils than any spice!....A garden fountain, a well of living water, and flowing streams from Lebanon.

What is your Beloved more than another beloved?

He is the source of all things good and wonderful, the beginning of happiness, joy and contentment. He is the sum of all things, the giver of life. He holds my eternity in His unchanging hands, my length of days and the sea of wisdom. He is my sin bearer, my covering, my shelter. He is the boundary to eternity and the Rock that I hold on to. His arms are a fortress and there is no changing or shifting in His truth. He is my provider and sustainer, my defender and champion. He is the everlasting King, faithful friend and healer of my soul.

He brought me to His banqueting house, and His banner over me was love.

Come, my beloved, let us go out into the fields and lodge in the villages, let us go out early to the vineyards and see whether the vines have budded, whether the grape blossoms have opened and the pomegranates are in bloom. There I will give you my love. The mandrakes give forth fragrance, and beside our doors are all choice fruits, new as well as old, which I have laid up for you, O my beloved.