a time for true love
{Isaac and Rebekah}

The world has painted a Hollywood, cinema-style picture of what "true love" is supposed to look like. So what if you feel like you don't measure up to that? Do you feel bad about your "lack of boyfriend" status?

We must remember: Love isn’t defined by Hollywood, by this worldly culture we live in, or by the card makers at Hallmark.

Let’s return to the true definition of love. We can only find pure, holy, perfect love in the eyes of Jesus. He is the Author of every good and heavenly love story. The kind of love that He gives, isn’t even worth comparing with a box of chocolates or a bouquet of flowers.

You are loved by the King of Kings!

Whether you’re single, dating, engaged, or happily married, the love that Jesus desires to pour out upon your heart this season, cannot be compared with the love of man! The love song that He sings over us is so much sweeter than anything even the most talented, romantic songwriter could compose.

I invite you to return to your roots. Let’s take a journey back to Genesis, and relive the love story of Rebekah and Isaac. There is so much we can learn from their story, with powerful principles and unfading truths that we can apply to our lives.

The classic story opens up with Abraham sending out his most trusted servant on a very important assignment: to find a bride for his son, Isaac! Abraham’s servant sets out on his journey, and has no idea what kinds of girls he’s going to meet along the way. How will he know whom God has chosen as Isaac’s future wife? Will his journey be successful?

Abraham’s servant prayed a very detailed prayer, asking that the Lord would highlight Isaac’s future bride, by having her offer him and his camels some water.

When we first meet Rebekah, we find her at the well. She was just an average girl, living an average life, doing her average everyday chores. She didn’t know that offering this man a drink of water, then going the extra mile to water his camels also, was going to qualify her for this role! Abraham was a very wealthy man, and he raised his son Isaac to be a prince of sorts. Rebekah was chosen to be his princess bride, in the midst of her daily mundane life. Rebekah was simply being faithful with her daily tasks. When she woke up that morning, she had no idea that her life was going to change forever.  

What if Rebekah wouldn't have shown up at the well? What if she despised her daily routine and said, "That's it! I'm not going to that stupid well anymore! My arms are tired of hauling the water. What’s the point of going there day after day, if I’m going to need more water again tomorrow?"

I doubt that Rebekah understood the significance and beauty that radiated from her faithfulness. The same is true for us. We don't know what God is doing behind the scenes, and what kind of lovely story He's going to tell in our lives when we simply show up, press on, and stay faithful.

I love that Rebekah's life changed when she went to the well, because our lives change every time we go to the well. The well of God's Word!

Jesus said, "But whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life." (John 4:14)

He also said, "Let anyone who is thirsty come to Me and drink." (John 7:34)

And Ephesians 5:26 says, "to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the Word..."

Every day that we choose to take a journey to the well of Jesus, and drink in the pure, holy, heavenly water of His presence and His Word, we are washed clean all over again. Washing in God's Word is a beautiful part of our preparation process, to be the bride of Christ.
 
Are there days in your life that you feel like skipping your time with God? Maybe you're super exhausted, and your flesh says that watching Netflix will be much more rewarding than spending time in the Word and prayer. But skipping out on your daily trip to the well can be detrimental. Why? Because you never know what you might miss out on! If Rebekah hadn’t shown up that day, her breakthrough wouldn't have come. Yikes. She would've had to wait much longer for her dreams of being a wife and mother to come true. She wouldn't have been part of this amazing story. We surely don't want that to happen!

Skipping our time with Jesus is something we simply cannot afford to do. Can you go a day without food or water? Ptsh, that's crazy! So then, why do we go for days without feeding our spirits the bread of heaven and drinking in the waters of Jesus’ abundant love?

No matter what our relationship status is, we must be determined not to become spiritually anorexic.  

Single sisters, we have so much to learn from Rebekah's story. Rebekah wasn't out dating around, searching for the perfect guy. She was in the middle of nowhere, doing boring old chores, chilling with her family. The world would look at a girl like Rebekah and say, "How is she ever going to find a guy?!"

But she didn't have to find anyone. And neither do you. Because the right guy will come out and find you.

He will seek you out as the precious treasure that you are. You do not have to put yourself on display and shout, "Look at me, look at me!" Like my friend Natalee says, "Ruth wasn't twerking, she was working!" Boaz found her. She didn't have to scheme up ways to get his attention, hop on Christian Mingle, and "put herself out there." Rebekah trusted that the Matchmaker would do his job! (And let me tell you, our heavenly Matchmaker, God the Father, is so much better than any earthly matchmaker or online dating site could ever be!)

Song of Solomon 8:4 says, "Daughters of Jerusalem, I charge you, do not arouse or awaken love before it's time."

God has a perfect timing for everything. We have to trust Him, and allow our hearts to rest in that truth.
When it was Rebekah's time for love to be awakened, things moved really fast! It was a season of SUDDENLY, and next thing she knew, she was proposed to, said goodbye to her parents, and rode off to marry her husband! When God's perfect timing unfolds, everything changes in the blink of an eye. I've seen many of my single friends, totally content to spend time with Jesus at the well, suddenly get the news that their Isaac has arrived! Then, in a scurry of excitement and holy chaos, he pops out a ring, wedding bells sing, and everything has changed!

If you're still sitting by the well, waiting for your prince charming to arrive, stop worrying. Fix your eyes upon Jesus, and embrace the time that you have with Him, your family, your friends, and the abundant amount of time that you can focus on your career, ministry, and things that you care about! Sister, you are so blessed! These single years are sacred. Embrace them. Because when the time comes for you to change your last name, the swift change will leave you breathless!

In the same way that Abraham sent out his servant to find a bride for his son, our Heavenly Father has done the same thing! God the Father desires a pure, spotless, suitable companion, and glorious bride for King Jesus! The most mind-blowing thing about this whole arrangement, is the girl that He picked for the marriage. He picked YOU. Are you just as shocked as I am?! How can we; messy, broken, imperfect people, be the Bride of Christ?! He told us,

"I will betroth you to Me forever; yes I will betroth you to Me in righteousness and in justice, in lovingkindness and in compassion, and I will betroth you to Me in faithfulness..." (Hosea 2:19-20)

He says, "Your Maker is your husband, the Lord Almighty is His name..." (Isaiah 54:5)


Sister, you're the girl that He wants. The glass slipper fits your foot. You are His chosen Cinderella Bride! Just like with Rebekah, the invitation to this marriage has been offered before we even see our Bridegroom’s face. Rebekah's family asked her, "Will you go with this man?" She said, "I will go."
We have the same choice. The world thinks we are crazy to run off and marry a God that we have never even met! "How can you believe in Jesus when you've never seen Him? Why would you choose to give your life to Him?" they ask.

But oh, we have caught a glimpse of His love for us. We have experienced a revelation of what happened on the cross, and how His love ran red through His blood. We've felt the whisper of His voice and undeniable comforting in the midst of life’s greatest storms. Even though we've never seen Him face to face, we love Him! Just like Rebekah, we say "YES! We will go!"

"Listen O daughter, give attention and incline your ear. Forget your people and your father's house. The King desires your beauty, because He is your Lord, bow down to Him..." (Psalm 45:10)

We have said goodbye to every other lover. Every idol. Every sin. Everything that holds us back from loving our King Jesus. We are engaged to be in a committed, covenant marriage relationship with Him; and even when we are faithless, He is still faithful! His wings of perfection and grace cover up all of our shortcomings, and we are perfect and blameless in His sight. How could we not love Him enough to go?

At the well, Rebekah was given a gold nose ring, and two bracelets. These were treasured gifts that were an outward symbol of the inward devotion to her Isaac. In the Bible, Isaac was a prophetic picture of what Christ would be like.

In our relationship with our Isaac (Jesus!) we have been given gifts from Heaven that express the fact that we are His bride. We've been given the Holy Spirit, the mind of Christ, the very nature and DNA of Christ, the fruit of the Spirit, and the gifts of the Spirit. He has lavished SO much upon us. Rebekah was given other gifts as well. In the same way that a glowing fiancé proudly wears her engagement ring, God has given gifts that prove the evidence of His Spirit being at work in our lives. If nobody knows that you're a Christian, then why aren't you wearing your engagement ring? Why are you keeping your love for Jesus a secret? There are so many ways that you can express symbols of your affection for Him, such as choosing to love others when you get super angry, saying “no” to sin, speaking words of encouragement rather than gossiping, living out the ten commandments in front of your friends, forgiveness, praying for the sick, witnessing, choosing purity, modesty, or giving your funds away to the poor and needy. All of these outward expressions are like a sparkly diamond on your ring finger. They beautifully proclaim, "I am my Beloveds and He is mine!"     

Just before Rebekah left her home and headed out to meet her groom, her family gave her a blessing. This is so beautiful. And extremely powerful! They told her, "Our sister, may you increase to thousands upon thousands. May your offspring possess the gates of the enemy."

They were speaking fruitfulness, life and multiplication over her! Jesus told us to bear much fruit, but He said that we can only do that by remaining in the vine, and abiding in His love. Apart from Him, we can do nothing! He wants our love to multiply, ignite, and change the lives of thousands upon thousands!

"May your offspring possess the gates of the enemy." This blessing wasn't just a sweet parting gift. It was stamped with a battle cry of justice.

Sisters, Jesus didn't just save us so that we could be princesses, wear pretty dresses, and get our nails done in the palace. He wants us to change this world. He has commanded us to go out into all the world, and make disciples (multiply!). He told us to be an army of love, speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, fight for the weak, redeem the lost and dying, strengthen the feeble hands, possess the gates of the enemy, and occupy until He returns! Our union with Christ isn't just about lovey-dovey feelings. It's about returning to the original battle plan of the Bible, putting on our boots, and joining Jesus in His mission to change this world through LOVE. You are His bride. He wants to do this WITH you. You are predestined to be a co-heir with Christ. You've got a huge calling on your life, but Jesus has promised to see you through it. Together, the two of you are unstoppable.