When God Plans a Meet Cute
We can’t see the picture God is working on above because our view is only of all the messy strings below. Corrie Ten Boom often spoke this thought from a beautiful poem written by Grant Colfax Tuller (1869-1950). I’ll add the poem, called The Weaver, at the end. But for now, I want to tell you about one of my strings and why I celebrate Valentine’s Day on February 12th every year.
In the winter of 1990, the photography studio I traveled with had me in Wisconsin during an arctic cold I’ll never forget. 30+ below zero with wind chills that brought that down to 80 below. Yikes! When I got back to Arizona for Christmas, I was ready to quit the road job and stay where it was much warmer. Alas, they called me at the end of January and said they needed an emergency rep on a red eye to Massachusetts because two other proof consultants had walked off the job. So, with no sleep, I headed to Las Vegas to grab a flight. I didn’t know I was flying to a destiny far different than what I had envisioned for my life.
I was alone at first, but then Linda arrived. We clicked right away and each saw the Spirit of God in the other. Within hours, she told me about a Christian man she knew who was 34 years old and had never been married. Her words: You two would be perfect for each other.
On February 12th, she called him from her room and then put me on the phone with him. We ended up talking for 2 hours, and he grabbed my heart by saying, “I’ll be honest. I’m looking for a serious relationship. But if that doesn’t happen between us, I want to stay friends because I already like you a lot.” Was that the bait or the hook? Lol! 🪝
I was living in the clouds for the next two days excited about when we would talk again. This time, I called him from my room, and it was an even longer conversation. But it started out with my telling him Happy Valentine’s Day since it was the 14th. His response was the reel that wound me into his life for 35+ years now. He said, “No, MY Valentine’s Day was two days ago.” Hook set, no wiggling off of that line for me.
So, today was our 36th Valentine’s Day on February 12th. My Kentuckiana life with my Kentucky soldier husband has been filled with real life moments that have included both blessings and trials, but the overall story has been blessings. But I’m jumping ahead, so I’ll say goodnight from here, and I hope some readers are inspired or encouraged by our meet cute from long ago. 💞
And here’s that poem I promised…
The Weaver (aka The Tapestry Poem or Life is But a Weaving)
My life is but a weaving
Between my God and me.
I cannot choose the colors
He weaveth steadily.
Oft’ times He weaveth sorrow;
And I in foolish pride
Forget He sees the upper
And I the underside.
Not ’til the loom is silent
And the shuttles cease to fly
Will God unroll the canvas
And reveal the reason why.
The dark threads are as needful
In the weaver’s skillful hand
As the threads of gold and silver
In the pattern He has planned.
He knows, He loves, He cares;
Nothing this truth can dim.
He gives the very best to those
Who leave the choice to Him."
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Wooden Hearts and Paper Roses
I love using AI image creators to make designs that appear to be either paper cut or wood cut. I do not have the talent or patience to do those crafts in real life, but I’ve seen them up close, and the detail is no comparison to the imitation. Still, I’m thankful for this form of media that allows my imagination to soar–even if it’s on artificial wings.
But as we look at all the abilities of AI, we’re faced with the fact that people can use these tools to create imitations of things they want others to see as real. Deep fake videos have made the subjects wonder how the creators got the detail so perfect that the subject felt as if they were looking into a mirror. Of course motivation is the real behind-the-scenes catalyst that determines if the project is just fun or truly nefarious.
Well before AI and computers, and even before the invention of plastic, real love was being imitated to all sorts of audiences for all sorts of reasons. Usually, the motivations were manipulation. Like Samson and Delilah, someone acts like they love someone else in order to cause that someone else to feel trusting enough to yield to requests. Delilah’s power of manipulation was so great that after she’d proven more than once that she was going to sell her lover out, he showed back up on her doorstep until the one confession too many that cost him his eyesight, his freedom, and eventually his life.
No one really likes the fake stuff, and even less when it’s fake love. My title combines two song titles decrying fake love, or real love coming to an end. Elvis said he didn’t have a wooden heart, so he would feel all the pain of loss if his love interest said goodbye. Linda Ronstadt begged her fake love to take away the real flowers he’d sent her for an (apparently fake) apology and replace them with fake paper flowers to match his imitation love. And though I didn’t add a teddy bear to the design, it’s worth mentioning that Barbara Fairchild sings a lament of a failed love that made her wish she was just a stuffed teddy bear on the shelf of a toy store. By only speaking a programmed “Isn’t it a lovely day” sentiment at the pull of a string, she wouldn’t have to feel the pain of fake love or real abandonment ever again.
There are many more songs with lovers begging each other for honesty and faithfulness. People want to be loved for real, and they want to give their love without fear of it being rejected or abused. And we want those things because we are made in the image of a God who is also called “Love” and has proven He’s not fake in a zillion different ways. And what does He want in return? The same thing back. He doesn’t have a wooden heart so He feels our rejection. He doesn’t want paper roses or Sunday only attention. And, He has no desire to just be a toy waiting for someone to pull His string for a miracle or blessing. Like us, He too wants true love. And in return, He promises real, satisfying love forever.
Matthew 28:20 CSB
[20] teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
https://bible.com/bible/1713/mat.28.20.CSB
And I love the way this promise is stated in The Message Bible...
Hebrews 13:5-6 MSG
[5-6] Don’t be obsessed with getting more material things. Be relaxed with what you have. Since God assured us, “I’ll never let you down, never walk off and leave you,” we can boldly quote, God is there, ready to help; I’m fearless no matter what. Who or what can get to me?
https://bible.com/bible/97/heb.13.5-6.MSG
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This Time, I Will Praise God
SPOILER ALERT! FIRST, read today’s commentary before you watch the video! This is the video I promised I would look for back when I told you this story was upcoming. It’s by my favorite parody group, ApologetiX, and this is their official video for the song, “Downer of a Sister” which is a parody of the song “Chop Suey” by System of a Down. If you would like to read the lyrics and learn more about this amazing band who writes and sings Christian parodies of songs from a variety of genres, visit this song’s lyrics page on their site at http://apologetix.com/music/song.php?freebie=true%20&song_id=383 Once you watch the video, I would love to hear your thoughts about this song, and other ApologetiX songs you may have listened to, in the comments below. Thanks.
Now, today’s reading comes from Genesis 29:18 through Genesis 30:18, and it continues the story of Jacob’s love for Rachael. Jacob loved Rachael so much that when Laban asked him to work for seven years in order to have her as his wife, he worked happily and said the years were like only a few days. And then the wedding and feast were set in order.
On the wedding night, Laban snuck in Leah because she was the first born, and Jacob did not know until the next morning that he had slept with (and therefore married) the wrong sister. He was angry at Laban, but Laban explained it was just the way they did things. He promised he would give him Rachael at the end of the marriage week if Jacob would promise to stay and work for another seven years. He wanted Rachael enough that he agreed to the request.
When he took Rachael as his wife, he was much more in love with her. Yahveh Almighty saw that Leah was unloved, so he made her fertile and Rachael unable to bear children. Leah bore 4 sons to Jacob before she gave birth no more, and each time she was certain that having the children would cause her husband to love her. She named her first three sons Reuben (see, a son), Simeon (God hears), and Levi (companion). But when she had a fourth son, she turned her praise toward God instead of hoping that her husband would love her, so she named him Judah, meaning praise.
Rachael was still infertile, so she gave her handmaiden to Jacob who bore him two more sons, Dan (he judged) and Naphtali (my wrestling). Leah, unfortunately still struggling to feel loved, then gave her own handmaiden to Jacob who also bore him two sons, Gad (fortune) and Asher (happy).
I truly feel compassion for both of these women. I am sad for Leah in feeling unloved, and having plenty of experiences to push her to feeling that way. I wish, for her sake, that she would have been able to have a relationship with God the way people these days are able to, with His Spirit of Comfort able to dwell within us, but somehow, she did know that it was God who was hearing her needs, and that is why she named her children as she did. I think when she named the last one Judah, she was giving praise directly to God, and maybe that’s why the lineage of our Messiah comes through that one.
I also felt bad for Rachael because of being childless. I know that feeling from my own childlessness. I know there is comfort in having children by proxy, and I love the nephews I was privileged to raise for a few years from the depths of my heart–even when they have hurt me. But I also know that there is a part of me that will always wonder what it would have felt like to have known a maternal bond from conception and birth. And yet, as Leah when she had her fourth child, I can still say, I will praise God.
Oh, and just to keep with the NaNo updating, my word count today is 22,731
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November 11, 2013 Posted by Crystal A Murray (aka CrystalWriter) | Bible Study, Nonfiction, Torah Commentary | Adonai, Almighty, Asher, Bible, Bible Gateway, Bible reading, Bible study, childless, Complete Jewish Bible, Creator, crystalwriter, Dan, Gad, Genesis, Genesis 29, Genesis 30, God, Holy Bible, Jacob, Judah, Laban, Leah, Levi, Lord, loved, marriage, Messiah, Naphtali, Old Covenant, Old Testament, Parashah, Portions, praise, Rachael, Reuben, Scripture, Simeon, sons, The Complete Jewish Bible, Torah, Torah commentary, Torah Portions, Torah Reading, tribe of Judah, tribe of praise, trick, true love, unloved, wedding, Word, Word of God, Word of the Lord, www.biblegateway.com, Yahveh, Yahweh | Leave a comment