Allow Yourself to be Loved
By Susan Barnes
"There are three things that are too amazing for me, four that I do not understand: ... the way of man with a maiden." Proverbs 30:18-19
The Contemporary English Version translates the verse this way, "I cannot understand how…people fall in love". Mills and Boon have published a mountain of books based on the mystery of people falling in love. Yet Paul writes about a more profound mystery in Ephesians 5:32 – Christ and the Church. Revelation 21 continues this thought where the Church is called the Bride of Christ.
It is a profound mystery that God would choose us to be the Bride of Christ. That he would love us, woo us and want to spend eternity with us. Perhaps this is why romance novels are so popular, because deep down we long to be loved, desired and pursued by someone who wants to spend the rest of their lives with us.
Our response to God, seen in this light, is surprisingly reluctant, keeping God at arm's length, making excuses not to pray, being too busy to spent time alone with him. C.S. Lewis has described prayer as taking part in the process of being deeply known. Perhaps this is why we sometimes don't take time to spend alone with God because we fear being deeply known. Yet God knows us intimately anyway and still loves and cares for us. This should give us the confidence to come to him and allow ourselves to be deeply loved.
Susan, an Australian pastor's wife, loves to enrich people's understanding of God. She regularly writes Bible devotionals, book reviews and inspirational articles. Read More
