I will declare that your love stands firm forever, that you have established your faithfulness in heaven itself. – Psalm 89:2

Today’s Scripture Reading (July 12, 2013): Psalm 89

My son is getting married today. In just a little while he will appear at the front of a church and prepare to watch his bride walk down the aisle toward him. This day symbolizes the start of their life together. Together they will promise to love each other, to cherish the moments of their lives, in the most basic way they will promise to simply be with each other through all of the happenings of life. It was over thirty years ago when I stood in the same place, with my bride, that he stands in today. And I know that there will be tough times ahead – we all go through them. But the mystical understanding is that love is the thing that gets you through life – even when life is hard. Love becomes the strength in the relationship, the back bone, the thing that keeps you going when every fibre of your being wants to simply give up.

But love does not just happen. It is something that my son and his bride will have to work at, to keep fresh. The terrible truth is that life can crush love if we are not careful. The very thing that we need to keep going dies when we need it most because we have never cultivated it when times were good. My hope and my prayer is that my kids will learn to cultivate their love, to help it grow and flourish in the good times so that, when the situations of life turn bad, the love that they need will be there for them, able to carry them through the rough waters of life – together.

The Psalmist, in the midst of the terrible flood waters of life is able to stand before God and say – I know that you still love me. I know that your love is totally capable of being the strength that I need right now. That even though I will have an end and these troubles will eventually be over, your love will never end.  Through every conceivable moment of my life, I know that your love is there.

But if we are honest, we also know that we struggle with the idea of a truly unconditional love. I mean, have you ever tried to tell someone that you love them unconditionally. A friend of mine tells of a conversation that he had with his love. And it was one those moments when she was feeling inadequate, and she asked him why he loved her. And the groom put his arm around his bride and said “I love you for no reason.” The words did not have the intended response. “There is no reason why you should love me?” she cried. But that was never the intention behind the words. What words could never fully describe was the idea that because love had been cultivated and cared for, he did not need a reason to love. He simply loved her. He was trying to tell her that his love had no conditions attached to it. But the truth is that in that moment, his bride wanted to be loved conditionally. She needed to be told that she was loved because she was beautiful and intelligent, that he loved the way that she cared for the children and the way her smile lit up a room the moment that she entered.

But the psalmist knows that none of those reasons are needed with God. His love is totally unconditional – which was good because in this moment of their existence there were very few reasons why God should love the rebellious nation. So the psalmist simply says that God’s love is forever.

Craig and Michelle – God’s love is forever. I hope that you can come to know the unconditional love that comes from him. And that you learn to give and accept that kind of love from each other throughout the days of your marriage. You are special – and loved not just by an earthly father, but by a heavenly one as well. The day is here – and the family has gathered to walk with you into a new reality. Let love lead the way.

With much love - Dad.

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Psalm 92 & 93