God's Passionate Love

"Oh! Ephraim is my dear, dear son,

my child in whom I take pleasure!
Every time I mention his name,
my heart bursts with longing for him!
Everything in me cries out for him.
Softly and tenderly I wait for him." God's Decree.
(Jeremiah 31:20, MSG)

What a verse! Found this one Sunday morning some time while we were at church.

Isn’t it fun to sometimes insert your own name into a verse and believe the good news you’re reading is for you? I changed out the name Ephraim to Annette and then reworked a few pronouns to fit better.

“Oh! … my dear, dear one.” God calls us dear—we’re so precious to Him.

We’re God’s children. He takes pleasure in us. (This theme is all over the Bible—God delights in us.)

He speaks our names and then He longs for us with a deep passion. He wants to spend time with us, to hear us pray, to commune with us. (see Song of Songs 2:14 and Rev. 3:20)

He desires us. Wow. This theme is so strong in this verse. Have you ever missed someone so badly you “cried out” for them? What if God has an insatiable need to be near you, to experience you, your heart?

Softly and tenderly He waits for us. Hmm… like a kind Father, or like a patient Lover. This is our God, our passionate, loving God.

Homework: write this verse down in your journal with your name (and appropriate pronouns) and meditate on it often. Get even more personal with God. Ask Him to open this verse up to you—its themes, its truths about His heart toward you. Delight in His delighting in you. This is how we get free, healed, blessed. When God shows us the truth about His heart toward us, voices of condemnation are silenced. Timidity gives way to confidence. Mistrust gives way to abandonment. God’s heart changes ours.

This verse is an invitation to enjoy Him. Let's go!