So I caught this show on PBS about a girl who lives in modern day London. She works and lives the modern life with all its’ pleasures and mundane-ness. Our heroin is completely obsessed with Jane Austen’s novel Pride & Prejudice and fantasizes of meeting Mr. Darcy in particular. Anyway, so she goes through this wormhole in her shower into the dimension of all things Pride & Prejudice. (Now there have been many a time where I have hoped my shower would wormhole me to Venice to no avail but for the sake of this imperfect analogy and BBC’s ratings, we’ll go with it.)
There is much more to the story but in short she ends up falling for Mr. Darcy and he for her. Her reputation, however, is called into question and she admits that she has had other lovers but says in a moment of epiphany that she has loved Darcy all her life and all those other men were really, in some way, just her searching for Darcy.
“It is clear to me now that I have always loved you. Every time I’ve fallen for a man I’ve closed my eyes and it’s been you.”
You see this girl had been looking for true, glorious, rapturous romance all her life. She’d offered herself to mediocre relationships hoping to catch a glimpse of love. These left her wanting and digging through the fictitious pages of a 200 year old book to believe a story could somehow reach into her own life and make her feel special, desired, known, loved. So here’s where your dense blonde friend had her own epiphany.
We are all in a love story whether we know it or not and don’t need to enter a shower wormhole to experience it. God is the great lover of our souls and I have looked in so many other places to fill this God-created-need to be loved and known as only He can love and know me.
Before I go any further let me say that I have a very happy marriage to a man I greatly admire, respect and love. We have an amazing love story and an amazing relationship. But even the happiest marriages cannot and do not fill this God created need to know and truly have a relationship with the Lover of our souls. The best, most romantic relationship will never be enough. We will still have longings for God, which may masquerade in this world as longings of another kind.
You see, the first lie in the Garden of Eden was that God was withholding. The serpent convinced Eve that God wasn’t giving her everything she needed to be fulfilled. That God wasn’t really good . . .
Jesus is not keeping us from what we really want, need, long for. He is all of those things. He is the end by which all other tastes of love are only that . . . tastes.
The next time our hearts leap over Mr. Darcy or any other contrived heartthrob, may it drive us to Jesus. Don’t just think of what you’re missing. Realize that this same feeling is there to draw us to Jesus. Take your longings to Him. Whether you’ve been hurt deeply in the arena of love or have a success story. Tell Him how the world has fallen short in fulfilling your longings . . . even if you’ve received everything you thought you had wanted. It is in this paradox that we find true joy. These first steps towards a deepening, authentic, intimate relationship that will grow stronger as we grow weaker. Making us more beautiful as we age and have less to offer physically.
And someday, we will be HIS bride. That’s right, girls, for all the man stuff in the Bible, we understand this one. Those flutters in our hearts for a guy down here, are merely echoes of what . . . of WHO we were made for. Hold on to that hope. We were made for perfect love. We will not find it anywhere on this earth but in Jesus. And someday, someday we will see Him as He is and all other longing will disappear with one look at our God.
Here are some further truths from God’s Word (and my friend Colleen) to reflect upon:
He has engraved me on the palm of His hand. Isaiah 49:16
He carries me close to His heart. Isaiah 40:11
He holds my hand. Psalm 73:23
He will do abundantly more than all I can ask or imagine. Ephesians 3:20
He daily bears my burdens. Psalm 68:19
He thinks of me constantly: His thoughts of me outnumber the grains of sand on the sea. Psalm 139:17–18
He is intimately interested in my life. He even knows how many hairs are on my head. Matthew 10:30
He has planned out my days. Psalm 139:16; 118:24
He prays for me. Hebrews 7:25; Romans 8:26
He freely forgives me. 1 John 1:9; Psalm 103:12
He protects and rescues me. Psalm 91
He understands my disappointments, sorrows, and weaknesses. Hebrews 2:17–18
He gives me the power to live like Him. Romans 8:9–11; Philippians 4:13
He delights in me and rejoices over me with singing. Zephaniah 3:17
He teaches me what is best for me. Isaiah 48:17
He helps me. Isaiah 41:10, 14; Psalm 118:13
He created me for a special purpose and designed me to be His wonderful creation. Ps 139:13–14; Jer 1:5; Ep 2:10
He will fulfill His purpose for me. Psalm 138:8; Philippians 1:6
His love for me is as high as the heavens are above the earth. Psalm 103:11
He makes my path level and smooth. Isaiah 26:7
He is always with me. Psalm 73:23
He guides me with His counsel. Psalm 73:24
He gives me wisdom. James 1:5
He keeps record of all my tears. Psalm 56:8
He satisfies my hunger and quenches my thirst. John 6:35
He holds me in His hand. John 10:27
He gives me life to the fullest. John 10:10
He laid down His life for me. John 10:11
He rejoices over me just like a bridegroom rejoices over his bride. Isaiah 62:5
He gives me good and perfect gifts. James 1:17
He listens to me; He hears my cry. Psalm 145:19
He fulfills my desires. Psalm 145:19; 37:4
He has compassion on me. Psalm 145:9
He cures me of backsliding. Jeremiah 4:22
He makes me pure. Ezekiel 36:25–26
He makes me happy. Psalm 16:11; 36:8
He has made me His child. Romans 8:14; Galatians 4:5; 3:26
He has given me fullness in Christ, and I am complete. Colossians 2:9-10
He has qualified me to share in the inheritance of the saints. Colossians 1:12
He has given me a home in heaven. Colossians 1:13; Ephesians 2:6
He has lavished on me all the riches of His grace. Ephesians 1:8
He longs to give me His very best. Isaiah 1:19
He is distressed in my distress. Isaiah 63:9
He lifts me up and carries me. Isaiah 63:14
He leads me through the depths and the darkness. Isaiah 50:10
He directs my steps. Proverbs 20:24
He chooses to forget my sins; He buries them in the deep sea. Isaiah 43:25, Micah 7:19
He has given me an inheritance far beyond my imagination. Psalm 47:4; Eph 1:18, Col 1:12
He provides me with the strength to serve Him. 1 Peter 4:11
