After the Honeymoon

"Happily ever after" is not automatic and eternal; it needs work.  Married couples know this.  It takes buckets of sweat and tears to make it happen.  Anyone, who is committed to a successful relationship, realizes, no sooner than after the honeymoon is over, that the vow needs to be followed by some serious hard work.  An uncle shared a joke at a wedding once.  In a marriage, there are three rings: the engagement ring, the wedding ring and the suffering.  Of course, everyone laughed, but it is the truth. 

What struck me in reading (Genesis 24:61-67) the passage about Isaac and Rebekah is that, in their early years, love reigned in their relationship.  They seem to be consumed with their love for each other.  However, in the latter years, romance seems to have dissipated.  In their household, conflict is palpable (Genesis 25:27-28). Each of them chooses one son to be a favorite; Isaac for Esau and Rebekah for Jacob.  Obviously, the couple's line of communication has broken down.  Rebekah demonstrates this when she conspired with her favored son to usurp her husband's power and secure Esau's blessing, so that her favorite, Jacob, can have it.  Clearly, she can only do this if her love and respect for her husband has long cooled off.  (Genesis 27).

Jesus declares that we, the church, are His bride (Ephesians 5).  You, dear one, are His bride.  He has continually shown through His actions, to the point of sacrificing His life on the cross in order to declare this, His love for us.  Everyday, He showers us with His affection through the beauty of His creation, His presence through our family and friends (and even strangers) and sends us love letters through His Word.  He works really hard to earn our love and attention.  For our part, do we take the time to reciprocate?  Do we show Him our appreciation or do we simply take His blessings for granted, be an ingrate and act like some entitled brat?  Are we aware of His presence all throughout our busy day?  Do we schedule a few minutes, from the 1,440 minutes in our day, some quality time with Him? Yes, our relationship with Him takes some commitment, some time and conscious effort.  Let us not allow our intimacy with Him to turn sour or to grow cold, much like how Isaac's and Rebekah's love for each other did.  We owe it to ourselves to keep the fires burning for our Heavenly Groom.  Let us stoke the fires daily.  After all, He is a huge part of our "happily ever after".