“You have been set apart as holy to the LORD your God, and He has chosen you from all the nations of the earth to be His own special treasure.” Deut 14:2
This past Sunday at church we had the honor of hearing Randy Frazee, the co-author of The Story, speak on marriage. During his sermon he listed the top five things that women want from their men and the top five things that men want from their women. Number one on the list for the men was to be admired by their wives. For the women it was to be touched and seen as beautiful in the eyes of her husband.
As I nodded emphatically tears seeped from my eyes. I, like many other white Christian women in America today, often feel like I don’t measure up beauty-wise. Not that we should be measuring ourselves next to the impossible standard that the media sets with its airbrushed photos and endless commercials for expensive beauty products that don’t really work. And yet we do still measure ourselves next to them, because honestly, who else do we have to compare with? They’re the ones that have been held up as the standard of measurement! And yet they themselves, in reality, can’t measure up either – hence the airbrushing! Honestly I feel bad for them, even the perfect ones aren’t perfect enough I can only imagine what the inside of their minds looks like at night when they can’t sleep because they gained five ounces today. L I wonder if I should start a foundation for the starving models in Hollywood… hmmmm…
In Randy’s sermon when he was talking about the woman’s deep desire to be seen as beautiful in her husband’s eyes, he made a fabulous point. “Out of all the women in the world that your husband could have chosen, he chose YOU. Obviously there is something in your appearance that he finds more attractive than all those other women out there.” At this point I am weeping openly, there’s no way to hide the fact that his words are sinking in and touching something deep inside the core of my insecurity. I want my husband to see me as beautiful and desirable and attractive and worthy of his time and affection. I want him to gently touch me as he passes me on his way through the room, not because he feels like he’s supposed to, but because he wants to. I want him to look at me with those eyes that tell me I’m the most beautiful woman in the room – even when I’m the only woman in the room. I want to feel like I’m special to him.
As I sit out here on the new deck my husband made for me, reading my Bible and soaking in the breeze in the tree tops and the morning chatter of the birds I’m taken away as I read Deuteronomy 14:2, “You have been set apart as holy to the LORD your God, and He has chosen you from all the nations of the earth to be His own special treasure.” Out of all the people in all the earth God chose YOU to be His precious bride, His own special treasure.
Isaiah 61:10 says,
“I am overwhelmed with joy in the Lord my God!
For he has dressed me with the clothing of salvation
and draped me in a robe of righteousness.
I am like a bridegroom dressed for his wedding
or a bride with her jewels.”
Three times in Revelation alone, and multiple times in the other New Testament books the Church is referred to as “the bride”. And my friend, YOU are the Church are you not? Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, and your acceptance of that gift of salvation, has draped you in a robe of righteousness. You are officially wrapped in a wedding gown fit for a queen and adorned with such jewels as this world has never seen.
According to Isaiah 62:3-4, the LORD holds you in His hand for all to see – a splendid crown in the hand of God. He says that “Never again will you be called ‘The Forsaken City’ or ‘The Desolate Land.’ Your new name will be ‘My Delight is in Her’ and ‘Married to God,'” My beloved friend, the LORD delights in you. He has chosen YOU for His beloved bride, His companion and partner through thick and through thin. He picked YOU, out of all the other possibilities, He chose YOU.
His delight is in YOU, His special treasure, His bride, His friend. When you walk across the room, His eye never leaves you. When you lie down and when you get up, His gaze is upon you. When a single hair drops from your head, He notices. He knows you intimately, better than you even know yourself, and He cares so deeply for you that He would rather die than to live one more day without YOU by His side for all of eternity.
Jesus died and rose again to pay the bride price for your soul. He sees you as all glorious within and without. He has seen your bare naked soul, your deepest thoughts and He DELIGHTS in them! He has seen your weaknesses and wants to support you with His hand on the small of your back as He guides you through the Valley of the Shadow of Death so that you will fear no evil.
His darling bride, you are loved!
You are cherished beyond compare.
You are the crown on His head, His treasured trophy wife!
Tamar Knochel 