If a branch is going to bear fruit, there comes a time in the believer’s life when growth is not an option. It is a necessity. To advance upon the stairs toward the heart of the Beloved means that Eros love must be left behind and a higher expression of love embraced. It is a […]
Vineyard Days – Three Confessions of Love, Part 1
The Shulamite’s (and our) progress in spiritual growth can be likened to ascending stairs from one level to the next. The lovely truth is that Shepherd Lover was so intentional in His desire for her fellowship that He designed opportunities for her to respond to Him (just as He does for us). At every level […]
Vineyard Days – In the Footsteps of the Flock
*** Yoyo-ing between frustration about herself and others and feeling good about her self-impression and how others viewed her, had swung her one too many times in the wrong direction. She was worn out and had finally tired. It was about time. The Shulamite was ready to listen… “Tell me, You whom my soul loves, […]
Vineyard Days – Selah
Selah. That simple word in scripture that invites us to pause, weigh and value what we have read. Selah is a suspension of music – and here in Solomon’s Song, here in the vineyard, let’s have a selah moment… The Word of God is rich in its truth. Like the Shulamite in Vineyard Days, the […]
Vineyard Days – The Shepherd’s Hut
Truths are first clouds, then rain, then harvest and food. ~ Henry Ward Beecher ~ How perfectly matched was the Shulamite to her Shepherd Lover. Just as there was nothing in His appearance that would warrant a second look, neither was there in hers. She was swarthy – a colorful word for dark, black, brunette, […]
Vineyard Days – The Way of the Beloved
Who is there that does not love a good story? The most intriguing, I have found, is the one that draws us into the fabric of the narrative being woven. As if we have stepped into the very pages… Such is the Song of Solomon. It is the beautiful and challenging account of the Lord’s […]
Vineyard Days – Parched Fields
Vineyard Days has been mulling around inside almost since I began writing Desert Days two years ago. Though I was experiencing a ‘parched field’ season back then, there was a growing assurance through faith that I had not traveled thus far in my life to remain living in desert-like conditions. If my desert was to […]
Vineyard Days
Who believes what we’ve heard and seen? Who would have thought GOD’s saving power would look like this? The servant grew up before God–a scrawny seedling, a scrubby plant in a parched field. There was nothing attractive about him, nothing to cause us to take a second look. He was looked down on […]
Royalty Realm – Sleeping Beauties, Part 2
When have you experienced the kiss of the King? As I sat down to write this post, that question was in my mind. So, I first tried to answer it myself before I asked it of you… Was it as a sick year-old baby in the hospital when I needed comfort? Was it as a […]
Desert Days – Leaning on Her Beloved
“Who is this that comes up from the wilderness, leaning on her Beloved?” (Song of Solomon 8:5 LITV) Some attribute these words to the bridegroom in the love story of the Song of Solomon. Others cite the question as being posed by the Shulamite’s friends. Both may be theologically correct. But I know what resonates […]