Skip to main content

The Proposal


“Glorify the Lord with me; let us exalt His name together.”

I stared at the words.  They hadn’t changed a bit over the years nor had their meaning for me.  I suppose I hadn’t really expected them to change, nor did I want them to.

The small, dull ache that ate at my heart was expected.  I had grown accustomed to its visits of late, coinciding with the times I read those words.  I would rather this visitor didn’t come – its presence invariable indicated that something was not quite right.

Those words, found in Psalm 34:3, were part of a proposal I had made some years ago.  It was not the type made in a board room before stockholders, business associates or executives.  The proposal I had was to the woman I wanted to marry.  “Glorify the Lord with me; let us exalt His name together!”  The words were the foundation of the hopes and desires I had for our future lives together.

Cheryl accepted my proposal!  We had the words printed on our wedding invitation – a public commitment to the direction we wanted our marriage to take.

We were married on May 26, 1984.  The words that were then the foundation of my proposal and the commitment of our hearts, also became something by which we could measure how we were doing.

That small, dull ache in my heart – that visitor that indicates something is not quite right – is a reminder from the Holy Spirit that I/we could be doing better.  He typically points to specific areas in which we could grow together – like finances, future goal and intimacy.

As uncomfortable as it may be at times, I’ve come to reluctantly welcome this dull ache.  Cheryl and I could have played it “safe” and made few or no serious commitments.  That way there would have been nothing to fail in, or grow in, or work at.  After all, when you aim at nothing, you usually hit it…

But those words from Psalm 34, printed on our wedding invitation, framed and hung on our wall, hold us accountable to something good, something to strive for, something that pleases God.


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

New Year Trash or Treasure?

You probably know the old saying:  “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure”.  I am not going to try to prove or disprove it, just look at it from a different angle. Cheryl and I were recently walking on a beach in Florida .  A man was walking along with a bag and was picking up trash and putting it in the bag.  Was he picking up things of value? We also saw a different man walking along the same beach with a metal detector.  He would swing it back and forth and would occasionally stop and dig in the sand.  Was he looking for things of value? Both were intent.  Both were focused.  Both were diligent. I’m guessing that the one picking up trash was not looking for things of value.  I’m also guessing that, by picking up trash, he was valuing the beauty of the beach and didn’t want the trash to mar it.  The one with the metal detector, I’m guessing that he was not looking for metallic items of trash but was looking for...

Don't Get Tripped Up

I do enjoy traveling and I keep an eye out for good prices. I also enjoy looking at trends in travel. For a while, the travel industry focused their advertising on taking those trips that might be on your bucket list.   That faded a bit and I started seeing ads about taking the trip of a lifetime. I guess both those campaigns have been waning since I’ve been seeing information about taking an “epic” trip.   Recently I noticed the phrase “unforgettable trip” in advertising.   More recently, I’ve been seeing promotions about taking “sustainable” trips and even “reconnecting to our roots” trips. As I’ve been pondering these advertising campaigns, I thought I’d consider what their ideas encompass and then look at them from a spiritual perspective: 1.   “ Bucket list trips ” are based on a list of the experiences a person might hope to have before they “kick the bucket” (i.e. die).   While I can certainly come up with a bucket list of trips, I’m thinking a bu...

Above My Pay Grade!

We like things that we can study, know and understand.  Sometimes we find it difficult to accept that there are things that might be hidden from our knowledge and understanding. The Scriptures indicate that there are some things hidden by design:  “The Lord our God keeps certain things hidden. But he makes other things known to us and to our children forever. He does it so we can obey all the words of this law.”  (Deut 29:29) Some versions of the Bible translate the hidden things as “secret things”.  Regardless, there are things which have been revealed and things which are kept hidden from us and remain secret. We may chafe at having to deal with the fact that some things remain hidden, but that’s often when faith and trust come in.  The Psalmist wrote:   “O Lord , my heart is not lifted up, my eyes are not raised too high; I do not occupy myself with things too great and too marvelous for me.”  (Ps 131:1) The Psalmist seem to realize that th...