Identity Edition (May/June 2019)

MAY/JUNE 2019 OHBELOVEDONE.COM YOU ARE A HELPER
Thy Maker
is thine husband;
the LORD of
hosts
is his
name; and
thy Redeemer
the Holy One
of Israel;
The God of
the whole
earth
shall he be
called.
Isaiah 54:5
There is nothing necessarily wrong
with dreaming about your wedding
day. The Bible frequently discusses the
concept of marriage. In fact, Jesus' first
public miracle happened at a wedding.
God knows weddings are a big deal! It is
the start of a new covenant, and of a
new family.
The "cause" or reason for this leaving
and cleaving was mentioned in the
verses just before: marriage is to be a
picture of Christ's love (the husband's
love) for the church (His bride). Marriage
is an incredible gift to us as God's
creation, but also a heavy undertaking.
And I was totally missing that.
To me, marriage was just what happened
after a perfect, fairy-tale day of
celebration.
It is certainly not difficult to be
reminded of romance and weddings
in the world we live in. Every girl has
a Pinterest board full of photo ideas,
wedding gown designs, and cliche
framed quotes. Nearly every movie
has a romantic relationship in it, if
the plot itself isn't centered around a
wedding. You can go on Instagram and
tap the hashtag #relationshipgoals or
#weddinggoals and suddenly you're
surrounded by unrealistic expectations.
Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 7:34-35,
"The unmarried woman careth for the
things of the Lord, that she may be
holy both in body and in spirit: but
she that is married careth for the things
of the world, how she may please her
husband. And this I speak for your
own profit. . . that ye may attend upon
the Lord without distraction."
As an unmarried young person, my goal
should have been holiness and serving
God with my whole heart. But as a wife,
I now have another task. In addition to
my pursuit of the Lord, I am responsible
for the care of my husband.
I wish I had made the most of my time
as a single person, instead of constantly
seeking romance. Wedded bliss should
not be the goal; holiness should be
the goal. When God finally brought
my now-husband into my life, we each
had to ask ourselves, "Will this person
aid my ministry and help me become
more holy, or hinder my ministry and
my journey toward holiness?"
Our wedding day was one of the best
i didn't lose my
first tooth until
i was 8
OH BELOVED ONE | 47