jealous

on thursday mornings, i have the pleasure of attending a mother's group at my church.  today, i had the pleasure of standing at the front door and welcoming each mom with a rose.  we thought it would be fun, since our meeting fell on actual valentines day, to greet the mommas with a rose.

confession:  my husband spoils me with flowers.  fact.  i get bouquets on the regular.  maybe so regular that the joy of receiving them has sort of worn off.  it's not that i don't love flowers.  i do.  i very much, do!  it's just that it has become part of my normal.  i forget that this is a special thing and that it is not something that every man does.  if i am honest, i might sometimes neglect to appreciate the fact that i am married to a man that shows his love to me through flowers.

but today, as i stood there, greeting mommas with roses, i saw delight in their eyes.  it dawned on me, that for many, this was their rose.  this was the flower they would get today.  and for many, it brought joy.  being remembered and "specialed" meant something to them.  it made me happy.

i stood just inside the entrance after the program had begun, so that i could be sure to catch the mommas that might arrive late.  worship began, and with my fist filled with roses, i began to sing.

He is jealous for me, Loves like a hurricane, I am a tree,
Bending beneath the weight of his wind and mercy.
When all of a sudden, I am unaware of these afflictions eclipsed by glory,
And I realize just how beautiful You are,
And how great Your affections are for me.

And oh, how He loves us oh
Oh how He loves us,
How He loves us all

i have sung this song many, many, many times.  but for some reason, maybe because of the roses in my hand, a memory from my childhood popped into my mind.

he is jealous for me 

my grandfather and my grandmother had known one another since elementary school.  the story they told me was that my grandmother lacked interest in my grandfather for years.  she went off to college and my grandfather went off to college.  he was interested in her the whole time, but it wasn't until he came home from college that she began to give in to his relentless pursuit.  i can literally still hear her say something to the effect of, "well...  i realized he wasn't going to give up, so i decided to give him a chance."  

and they lived happily ever after.

i mean it.  in spite of the challenges that life is certain to give everyone, they literally loved and cherished one another dearly.  

when he would give her roses, which he did frequently, he would given her a dozen red for love and one yellow for jealousy.  he always wanted to remind her that he was jealous for her.  

literally- he was telling her symbolically that he was so happy that she was his person.  he was jealous for her!  

and as i sang this song this morning, the memory illuminated my heart and my mind.  that... THAT is the kind of love our Father has for US.  

HE IS JEALOUS FOR ME.

and when i lack interest or play hard to get or whatever it is that i might do to distance myself from God...  he is jealous for me. he longs to be "my person".  and just like my grandfather relentlessly pursued my grandmother, God relentlessly pursues us.  

He relentlessly pursues YOU.  He longs for you to know him, choose him and give your life to him.

and just like i can be prone to take my husband's flower giving for granted...  i can often find myself taking that jealous love from a Heavenly Father who pursues me with His hurricane like force love for granted.

with a fist full of roses, a memory of two people who demonstrated love so well in my mind and a heart in the posture of worship, my heart filled up with joy.  i am so thankful to be reminded that my Father loves ME like THAT.  

seriously- look at the picture of my grandparents.  i can't even count the number of times that i saw him look at her like that.  his look said it all. he loved her.  he cherished her.  she was HIS and he could not be more joyful.

God feels that way about you.  and about me.  

that my friends, is love.  and each one of us has the ability to receive love just like that.