LOVE THAT LASTS A LIFETIME
By
Ada Brownell
The
old man’s gnarled fingers gripped the polished arms of the chair. His grey eyes
snapped with enthusiasm. “I’ve sent my servant Abahu to my country and to my
kindrid. He will return with a wife for you. I’ve done this so your seed will
inherit this land the Lord gave to me--and our children and children’s
children.”
Abraham,
the old man, squinted his eyes, waiting for a response from his son, Isaac.
Already 40
years old, Isaac had noticed the beautiful daughters of the wicked Canaanites, their neighbors. He ran his
figures through his shoulder-length brown hair, his heart pounding. A wife!
Could the aged servant his father sent tell who would please him?
“I should have
gone with Abahu!” Isaac dropped on his knees in front of his papa, upset, but loving
the feeble man and seeing his frailty. “This is important!”
Abraham reached
for Isaac’s hand. “I couldn’t bear to send you back to that country. I sent my
servants with many gifts. Be in peace. I
saw an angel leading the way.”
A few days
later, Abahu stood with 10 camels near a well where women of the city came to
draw water.
“Oh, Lord God,
I pray thee send me good speed this day and show kindness to my master Abraham,”
he prayed. “Let the damsel I ask for a drink also volunteer to water my
camels.”
Before he was
done praying, Rebekah walked toward the well with her pitcher on her shoulder.
After she filled it, she held out her hand to Abahu. “Drink, my lord.”
While Abahu drank, he observed the young woman
who was returning to the well. She turned to him. “I will draw water for thy
camels also.”
She was the
one!
In a short time,
the servant had her father’s approval, but her family called for Rebekah to see
if she wanted to go.
“I will go,”
she said.
Rebekah left, bringing
along her damsels, as they rode camels and followed Abraham’s servant.
Isaac was out
meditating in the field at evening when in the distance saw riders coming.
Rebekah saw him
Knowing it must be the man that was to
be her husband, she covered her face with a veil, jumped off the camel and into
Isaac’s waiting arms. And he loved her and married her right away.[1]
Contrast this
story with King David who could see Delilah bathing on a roof next to the
palace. His lust resulted in a quick tryst, an attempt at a cover-up, the intentional
killing of Delilah’s husband, and the death of the beloved child born as a
result of their sin. All of his life, David regretted his transgressions.
People
have confused lust with love since the beginning, and it might be more
widespread today than ever before.
The Bible says when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished,
bringeth forth death (James 1:15). That’s often verified today. The Ccnter for Disease Control’s
2010 report on Sexually Transmitted Diseases identified STDs as one of the most
critical health challenges facing our nation, with 19 million new infections
each year costing the health care system $17 billion, not to mention the misery
caused by herpes, the shame, the cancers caused human papilloma virus, the
infertility caused by Chlamydia, liver failure caused by hepatitis, not to
mention AIDS, and emotional problems such as suicide, unwed pregnancy, abortion,
alcoholism, drug addiction and even murders from jealous lovers.
Contrast that with the Bible’s definition
of love: “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast,
it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily
angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but
rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes,
always perseveres.
True love waits until after the
wedding because of love deeper than lust. The couple vows to love each other,
forsaking all others, until death. Love cares for their children until they’re able
to care for themselves.
Love is
far more intense than lust. Lust may last for a few moments, a few nights,
maybe even a few years. But love, especially when deepened by God’s
supernatural love, endures for a lifetime and beyond, through every moment,
long beyond outward beauty, into every heartache, every sickness, every
financial crisis, every disappointment, every loss, and even in death.
An old man knew he was dying and
he asked his wife, “We’ve slept together for 68 years. Wife, crawl up into this
hospital bed with me and sleep with me one more time.”
And she did.
The
Bible says love never fails. (1 Corinthians 13:8).
©Ada
Brownell 2012
Ada Brownell is author of a book about supernatural love—how even
after Adam and Eve disobeyed and ate of the forbidden tree and became mortals
that would age, become ill and die, God promised He would send Someone to
change that and restore eternal life. Read about it in her book, Swallowed by LIFE: Mysteries of Death,
Resurrection and the Eternal, in either paperback or for Kindle at http://amzn.to/Jnc1rW Watch for her teen novel, Joe the Dreamer: The Castle and the
Catapult, available in the near future.
Ada Brownell author page: http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B001KJ2C06
Swallowed by LIFE: http://amzn.to/Jnc1rW
Confessions of a Pentecostal: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0088OP460
Twitter:
@adellerella
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