By Rachel Olsen
“The bride, a princess, waits within her chamber, dressed in a gown woven with gold. In her beautiful robes, she is led to the king; accompanied by her bridesmaids.” Psalm 45:13-14 (NLT)
Once upon a time there was a handsome prince in need of a bride. Far away, in another part of the kingdom, lived a beautiful woman who possessed great potentional but was under the oppression of an evil one who was quite envious of her. This prince was strong and brave. He left the castle, came in and rescued the woman from the hands of the evil one, setting her free.
She in turn couldn’t help but fall in love with her noble rescuer. “You are the most handsome of all! You are so gracious! God himself has blessed you forever!” she exclaimed as she held tightly to his waist to steady herself on the back of his white horse. He took her to the palace where she was bathed and then covered in beautiful linens and sweet-smelling oils. The prince was captivated by her radiance and called her to his side. It seemed as if they were two pieces of the same whole, destined to come together as one.
She was advised, “Forget your people and your homeland far away. For this royal prince delights in your beauty; stay here and honor him!” In response she declared, “I will bring honor to his name,” and she set her heart on a future with him. Soon, a wedding date was set and you know the rest of the story … they lived happily every after!
How do you feel about this “fairy tale?” Do you wish that were the story of your life? Maybe you rail against fairy tales believing them to be dumb stories that keep women under men’s thumbs. Or maybe your reaction is, “Sweet story, but definitely not plausible!”
I can think of no better time than the week of Valentine’s Day to tell you that this tale does come true for millions of women. If you are a Christian woman – married or single – this is your story! The story above is based on scripture (Psalm 45) and parallel’s our relationship with Christ.
Jesus is your Rescuer … your handsome Prince … your royal Husband. He wants nothing more than to rescue you from the evil grip of sin and bring out the best in you. He wants to purify you with His Word and His Spirit and keep you by His side forever.
Can you hear Him calling your name today? Listen, He is saying, “How beautiful you are, my darling! Oh, how beautiful!” (Song of Songs 1:15, TNIV). Will you respond by leaving your past behind, setting your heart on Him, and bringing honor to His Name?
Dear Lord, purify me as your bride. Mold my heart that it would be befitting the honor of marrying the Prince of Peace. Help me to leave my past behind and focus on my eternal future with You. Show me how to serve and glorify You today. All my love…in Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Related Resources:
Do You Know Jesus?
For more encouragement on this topic, visit Rachel’s blog
His Princess, Prayers to My King, by Sheri Rose Sheperd
Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers
Application Steps:
Read Psalm 45 today. It is the story of a wedding, commonly seen as a prophecy about Christ and His bride, the church.
Reflections:
Think for a moment about how much you would, or did, prepare for your own wedding day.
Are you putting a similar level of effort into preparing yourself to be the bride of Christ?
What is required of the bride of Christ?
Power Verses:
Hosea 2:19, “I will betroth you to Me forever; Yes, I will betroth you to Me in righteousness and justice, in lovingkindness and mercy.” (NKJ)
Psalm 36:5, “Your love, O Lord, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies.” (NIV)
Psalm 45: 17, “I will bring honor to your name in every generation. Therefore, the nations will praise you forever and ever.” (NLT)
“The bride, a princess, waits within her chamber, dressed in a gown woven with gold. In her beautiful robes, she is led to the king; accompanied by her bridesmaids.” Psalm 45:13-14 (NLT)
Once upon a time there was a handsome prince in need of a bride. Far away, in another part of the kingdom, lived a beautiful woman who possessed great potentional but was under the oppression of an evil one who was quite envious of her. This prince was strong and brave. He left the castle, came in and rescued the woman from the hands of the evil one, setting her free.
She in turn couldn’t help but fall in love with her noble rescuer. “You are the most handsome of all! You are so gracious! God himself has blessed you forever!” she exclaimed as she held tightly to his waist to steady herself on the back of his white horse. He took her to the palace where she was bathed and then covered in beautiful linens and sweet-smelling oils. The prince was captivated by her radiance and called her to his side. It seemed as if they were two pieces of the same whole, destined to come together as one.
She was advised, “Forget your people and your homeland far away. For this royal prince delights in your beauty; stay here and honor him!” In response she declared, “I will bring honor to his name,” and she set her heart on a future with him. Soon, a wedding date was set and you know the rest of the story … they lived happily every after!
How do you feel about this “fairy tale?” Do you wish that were the story of your life? Maybe you rail against fairy tales believing them to be dumb stories that keep women under men’s thumbs. Or maybe your reaction is, “Sweet story, but definitely not plausible!”
I can think of no better time than the week of Valentine’s Day to tell you that this tale does come true for millions of women. If you are a Christian woman – married or single – this is your story! The story above is based on scripture (Psalm 45) and parallel’s our relationship with Christ.
Jesus is your Rescuer … your handsome Prince … your royal Husband. He wants nothing more than to rescue you from the evil grip of sin and bring out the best in you. He wants to purify you with His Word and His Spirit and keep you by His side forever.
Can you hear Him calling your name today? Listen, He is saying, “How beautiful you are, my darling! Oh, how beautiful!” (Song of Songs 1:15, TNIV). Will you respond by leaving your past behind, setting your heart on Him, and bringing honor to His Name?
Dear Lord, purify me as your bride. Mold my heart that it would be befitting the honor of marrying the Prince of Peace. Help me to leave my past behind and focus on my eternal future with You. Show me how to serve and glorify You today. All my love…in Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Related Resources:
Do You Know Jesus?
For more encouragement on this topic, visit Rachel’s blog
His Princess, Prayers to My King, by Sheri Rose Sheperd
Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers
Application Steps:
Read Psalm 45 today. It is the story of a wedding, commonly seen as a prophecy about Christ and His bride, the church.
Reflections:
Think for a moment about how much you would, or did, prepare for your own wedding day.
Are you putting a similar level of effort into preparing yourself to be the bride of Christ?
What is required of the bride of Christ?
Power Verses:
Hosea 2:19, “I will betroth you to Me forever; Yes, I will betroth you to Me in righteousness and justice, in lovingkindness and mercy.” (NKJ)
Psalm 36:5, “Your love, O Lord, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies.” (NIV)
Psalm 45: 17, “I will bring honor to your name in every generation. Therefore, the nations will praise you forever and ever.” (NLT)
7 Comments:
I have been in bad relationships so many times, I have been afraid to dream, but I am in a relationship with a youth pastor and this helps me to see it is safe to dream again. I NEEDED TO READ THIS TODAY!
God is so awesome! He has given me my soulmate, but before I could appreciate him Jesus had to prepare me for him. Beautiful devotion!
I have been in bad relationships and the story of Cinderella always gives me hope that I have a Prince coming to take me and wipe all the tears from my eyes. I experienced so much heartache and I may lose hope finding true love in this world, but I know there is a real Prince who will come at the hour I do not know. Jesus is coming I know and He is my only hope!
I have had this dream for my whole life and thought I had realized it, not only in Christ, but in my husband. Well, now my prince charming has abandoned his vows to me, and I am finding myself with constant reminders that my Perfect Husband is still with me. I will not let this scorn dash my hopes of realizing this happily ever after...thank you for a Valentine's "upper," which I needed so deeply. :) em
I was saved 3 years into my marriage. It has now been 16 years and I am still married to an unbeliever. It is amazingly tough to stay married. I ask for God's grace to remain here everyday. Your blog reminds me that I have a heavenly husband....his name is JESUS! He is here with me every minute of every day. He will never leave me nor forsake me. He is the lover of my soul and I am the apple of His eye!!!!
I am married and love my husband dearly but he isn't perfect, of course, so when his imperfections get me down, I turn to the Awesome, Lover of my soul and King of my life. He gives me the grace and ability to continue to love my husband (when I want to leave). All I do is talk to Him about whatever is bothering me and He works in that situation every time. I couldn't live without Him. He makes life worth living. Praising and Rejoicing in Him.
This devo was God's anniversary card to me this year. I received it on the very day of my 20th wedding anniversary. I am currently separated from my husband. The weekend prior to this day, I was literally grieving the loss of what I should have had in my marriage. My husband has had a sexual addiction that has shattered my dreams from day one.
I expressed to a friend that I longed for that prince who would love and cherish me the way that I longed to be. I admitted that I knew that Christ was my Prince, my faithful Bridegroom. But, I told her that I needed to feel it in my heart, not just know it in my head.
The day of my anniversary, I woke up and went to my Proverbs 31 devo.
I was amazed as I began to read the words. They perfectly expressed what I had told my friend that weekend. Tears began streaming down my face as the Truth of who Christ is to me and how much He loves and cherishes me pierced my heart.
I am considering that devo to be God's special anniversary card to me. I have copied it and am saving it to read on every other anniversary date. This was such a special reflection of God's love for me that I am astounded by it.
Post a Comment
Home