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Resting in Him…. (devo reflection)

Isaiah 2:22 Stop trusting in mere humans, who have but a breath in their nostrils. Why hold them in esteem? (NIV)
I am utterly exhausted. Every day of this school year I have felt like a hamster on a wheel, running for all I’m worth and getting nowhere but exhausted. The kids are great. Being together again is a plus. Class discussions are fantastic. I’m just exhausted, and I am not alone.
Isaiah 2:22 Don’t put your trust in mere humans. They are as frail as breath. What good are they? (NLT)
What do these thoughts have to do with Isaiah 2:22? I’ve always prided myself on my self sufficiency, my ability to do what needs to be done. But there is definitely still something amiss here. I start every day rooted in His word, but I can’t help but think that if I were truly resting in Him as I should, I wouldn’t be this exhausted.
Isaiah 2:22 Put no more trust in man, who has only the breath in his nostrils. Of what account is he? (BSB)
Lord, Thank You for this day and this scripture. Thank You for the reminder that I cannot do this life alone, I cannot make it through in my own power. Thank You for the promise of Your peace that surpasses all understanding. Draw me closer, Lord. Wrap me in Your peace, rest, and love. Amen.
Isaiah 2:22 Stop trusting the power of humans. They are all going to die, so how can they help? (CEV)
Have a blessed day.
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Reasoning together…. (devo reflection)

Isaiah 1:18a “Come now, let us settle the matter,” says the Lord….
Several translations use the wording “let us reason together” instead of “let us settle the matter.” That seems an important distinction to me. God wants us to make the best choice for our lives, but He has given us the free will to choose and the reason and intellect to make the right choice. So why do we often still choose wrong? Are we idiots? Gluttons for punishment? So wrapped up in hedonistic pleasure that even when God is the obvious choice, we still choose vice?
Isaiah 1:18b …“Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.”
I wonder if part of the problem is disbelief (which boils down to lack of trust. Jesus, Help me.) It is difficult to fathom that a garment dripping scarlet could ever be white as snow again. But this offer is given to all—Saint and sinner, rich and poor, worldly and sheltered. We just have to trust and believe. Such simple concepts. So difficult to put into practice.
Isaiah 1:19 If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the good things of the land…
Lord, Thank You for this day and this scripture. Thank You for Your mercy and compassion. Your offer seems too good to be true. You seem too compassionate to be real. “I believe, Lord. Help my unbelief!” (Mark 9:24). Draw me closer. Amen.
Isaiah 1:20 …but if you resist and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword.”
Have a blessed day.
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Come away, my beloved….

Song of Songs 8:12a But my own vineyard is mine to give….
I wish I could say at the end of this chapter that now this book totally makes sense in the larger cannon and in my life of faith. I can find connections to my faith if I look hard enough, but I’m still baffled about this book.
Song of Songs 8:12b …the thousand shekels are for you, Solomon….
The commentary that uses this section as a reminder to “take care of your ministers” is a case in point. It seems an odd reading, given the rest of the book. Or the focus on love and purity and saving yourself for your spouse, the mate God has for you. These are things I believe in fully, yet Solomon is being held up as that perfect, loving mate? Remind me again of the number of wives and concubines he had.
Song of Songs 8:12c …and two hundred are for those who tend its fruit.
Lord, Thank You for this day and this scripture. Thank You that even in my confusion I am able to draw closer to You. Help me to keep questioning, keep searching, keep seeking. Help me to draw closer to You. Always. Amen.
Song of Songs 8:14 Come away, my beloved….
Have a blessed day.
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Finding delight…. (devo reflection)

Song of Songs 7:1 How beautiful your sandaled feet, O prince’s daughter!
I’m struggling with Song of Songs more than I thought I would. It definitely seems to be advocating and blessing marriage and the physical intimacy that comes with it, and I can see some parallels between marriage and our relationship with Christ, but I’m not sad that tomorrow is the last chapter. I’m ready to move on.
Song of Songs 7:6 How beautiful you are and how pleasing, my love, with your delights!
Overall, to me, this book just doesn’t seem to fit, it feels so different. Though commentary today mentioned that the groom describes the bride’s beauty three different times and she only describes his once, concluding, “…God finds us much more delightful than we find Him.” That seems an accurate statement.
Song of Songs 7:10 I belong to my beloved, and his desire is for me.
Lord, Thank You for this day and this scripture. Thank You for Your fierce love of Your creation. Forgive me for being so caught up in myself and my life. Help me to seek You and to see You everywhere in my life. Help me to praise Your presence and Your name. Draw me closer. Amen.
Song of Songs 7:11 Come, my beloved, let us go to the countryside, let us spend the night in the villages.
Have a blessed day.
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Loving acceptance…. (devo reflection)

Song of Songs 6:5a Turn your eyes from me; they overwhelm me….
Reading through this description of his beloved, a modern reader might think it more in line with Shakespeare’s Sonnet 130, where the speaker begins, “My mistress’s eyes are nothing like the sun;” however, commentary indicates that in its original context, this section of Song of Songs would indeed have been praise.
Song of Songs 6:5b …Your hair is like a flock of goats descending from Gilead.
The thing that both this description and Sonnet 130 share, the idea that Jesus also embodies, is loving acceptance, regardless. The beloved shows it even after their tiff in the last chapter. The speaker shows it even though his beloved isn’t the fairest in the land, Jesus shows it even though we aren’t anywhere close to perfect.
Song of Songs 6:6 Your teeth are like a flock of sheep coming up from the washing. Each has its twin, not one of them is missing.
Lord, Thank You for this day and this scripture. Thank You for Your fierce, unconditional love of Your children. Help us to love ourselves and each other as You love us. Draw us closer. Amen.
Song of Songs 6:7 Your temples behind your veil are like the halves of a pomegranate.
Have a blessed day.
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The need for relationship…. (devo reflection)

Song of Songs 5:2 I slept but my heart was awake. Listen! My beloved is knocking….
This chapter puts me in mind of the need for relationship, for intimacy—not the sexual connotation of the word, but in the literal denotation, a close familiarity or friendship with another.
Song of Songs 5:3 I have taken off my robe—must I put it on again? I have washed my feet—must I soil them again?
Intimacy with another, even Jesus, doesn’t just happen by accident. It has to be intentional—time carved out to be together, listening and noticing, asking and paying attention, going beyond just surface level sharing, being vulnerable. It takes determination and work. It sometimes requires personal sacrifice, but putting that time and effort into a relationship, especially my relationship with Christ, is so worth it.
Song of Songs 5:16a His mouth is sweetness itself; he is altogether lovely….
Lord, Thank You for this day and this reminder. Thank You for the certainty that You made us for relationship, that You want a close, personal, intimate relationship with us. Help me to put in the time and effort to accomplish that. Draw me closer. Amen.
Song of Songs 5:16b …This is my beloved, this is my friend….
Have a blessed day.
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Altogether beautiful…. (devo reflection)

Song of Songs 4:7 You are altogether beautiful, my darling; there is no flaw in you. (NIV)
This verse has always struck me. We are none of us perfect, but this speaks to love and to focusing on the positive, building up the one you love. What a gift.
Song of Songs 4:7 You are altogether beautiful, my darling, beautiful in every way. (NLT)
It puts me in mind of 1 Peter 4:8 “Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.”
Song of Songs 4:7 O my love, you are altogether beautiful and fair. There is no flaw nor blemish in you! (AB)
Lord, Thank You for this day and this scripture. Thank You for the reminder to focus on the good, to love and edify each other. Thank You for Your fierce love of Your children. Draw us closer. Amen.
Song of Songs 4:7 You are absolutely beautiful, my darling; there is no imperfection in you. (CSB)
Have a blessed day.
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The one my heart loves….

Song of Songs 3:1a All night long on my bed I looked for the one my heart loves….
Today’s chapter brings to mind the ideas of longing, fellowship, and intimacy (not necessarily sexual, but the text could be read that way). I talked yesterday about the ideas of belonging and isolation and how we are hardwired for community, ideas that are definitely woven through this text.
Song of Songs 3:1b …I looked for him but did not find him.
This morning, as is rather common, I find myself exhausted. So while I know with all sincerity that community is important, that we are made for community, I also know that rest for our weary souls is important, too.
Song of Songs 3:2a I will get up now and go about the city, through its streets and squares….
Lord, Thank You for this day and this scripture. Thank You for the reminder that we need fellowship and intimacy (going beyond surface connections) in our lives. Additionally, we need rest and renewal to be able to function well in this life. Help me draw closer to You always. Give me rest for my soul. Amen.
Song of Songs 3:2b …I will search for the one my heart loves….
Have a blessed day.
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His banner over me is love…. (devo reflection)

Song of Songs 2:1 I am a rose of Sharon, a lily of the valleys.
One of the topics we are discussing in my classes right now is the idea of belonging and the sting of isolation. I’ve always interpreted verse 1 as the speaker exalting herself as beautiful, but commentary points out that these are not showy, ornamental flowers. She’s describing herself as fairly ordinary. Don’t we all feel the isolation of ordinary at times?
Song of Songs 2:2 Like a lily among thorns is my darling among the young women.
But the male speaker loves her, claims her as his beloved, despite her view of herself. He sees her as a rose among thorns. His banner of belonging over her is unconditional love. I can’t help but see a model of Jesus’s love for me (and you and all) here.
Song of Songs 2:4 Let him lead me to the banquet hall, and let his banner over me be love.
Lord, Thank You for this day and this scripture. Thank You for seeing my internal worth and beauty despite my flaws and despite my own opinion of myself at times. Thank You for waiving Your banner of love and acceptance over me and declaring me as Your beloved. Help me to love others as fiercely and unconditionally as You love me. Draw me closer. Amen.
Song of Songs 2:10 My beloved spoke and said to me, “Arise, my darling, my beautiful one, come with me.
Have a blessed day.
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My beloved…. (devo reflection)

Song of Songs 1:12 While the king was at his table, my perfume spread its fragrance.
So many things fascinate me about this book. One is that it is so unlike anything else in the Bible, which begs the question: How does it fit with everything else? Another is that it seems to tell a story, but it isn’t chronological. Commentary calls it “a collection of ‘snapshots’ … not necessarily in order.” Why?
Song of Songs 1:13 My beloved is to me a sachet of myrrh resting between my breasts.
The descriptions remind me a bit of life—weird, messy, confusing. And the book comes on the heels of Ecclesiastes telling us to enjoy even the little things but to remember that God is what gives this life meaning.
Song of Songs 1:14 My beloved is to me a cluster of henna blossoms from the vineyards of En Gedi.
Lord, Thank You for this day and this scripture. Thank You for the ability to puzzle through things that confuse us. Thank You for giving my life meaning. Help me to use the study of Song of Songs to bring me closer to You. Help me to shine Your light. Amen.
Song of Songs 1:15 How beautiful you are, my darling! Oh, how beautiful! Your eyes are doves.
Have a blessed day.