You have searched me and you know me … you are familiar with all my ways. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me to attain.
Psalm 139:1, 3, 5-6
My son just got married in North Carolina on June 7th (weighty pause as I absorb the reality that I’ve risen to mother-in-law status).
My daughter-in-law (another pause that I have one …) is a lovely, thoughtful soul who did not grow up in an intact family. Her family's interactions with one another are respectfully and pleasantly civil but very different from what I've always experienced—and come to expect from my family.
Case in point.
Though it required a lo-o-o-o-ng road trip or air fare for several of my siblings and a couple nieces to travel from Texas to the Atlantic coast of North Carolina, everyone who had the ability to attend the wedding did so. Those who weren't there had been praying over this big day since they got engaged, a vital act of love!
That's what we do. Because that's what the love of God does.
The evidence of love and support overwhelmed my daughter-in-law during the rehearsal dinner and reception. Like King David's conclusion about the love of God, it was "too wonderful" for her. A box of tissues would have been a nice addition to the table decor.
During a tender moment at the reception, my husband glanced around the table where we sat with my siblings and two dear friends of ours. Overwhelmed by the show of support, he tearfully expressed his gratitude.
A beat of silence followed.
One sister boldly and compassionately answered him with, “That’s what we do.”
Yes, that’s what love does. It travels far and wide and reflects the sacrificial love of Christ, overwhelming us with its eternal, boundlessness, and far-reaching nature.
God's love isn't deserved and can't be earned or revoked.
Such knowledge, when we receive it, is too wonderful for us, too lofty for us to attain.
How precious to me are your thoughts, God! Psalm 139:17
At the beginning of Psalm 139, a guilt-ridden King David is doing his level best to flee from God's presence but without success. But by the end of the Psalm, he comes to welcome and trust God's love and invites him to search his heart and to know him fully.
Because God's overwhelming love should motivate us look and act like his Bride, the Church he died to redeem.
Points to Ponder
✶ When have you been overwhelmed by the love of God?
✶ When have you been given an opportunity to exhibit God's love to another and what was the result?
✶How readily do you welcome God's probing presence in your life?
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Until next time,
In celebrating the happy couple, other family ties were reinforced. How beautiful and wonderful !!
Oh but we have to talk one day when Mr. Bruce is home my friend. Loved this post; and congratulations on mother-in-law-hood. Is that a thing?
I loved your post. It made me think of a very recent time when I had just come home from the hospital from having a mastectomy, and my sweet youngest sister made the l-o-n-g trek from her home on the other side of town to come visit me. I was overwhelmed with her love for me. And I still am! Love you, Mary
What an uplifting message of love and joy. Thank you and congratulations to all. May God continue to bless you all with His gift of love.