ready

"O let us be married! too long we have tarried."

-- Edward Lear (from "The Owl and the Pussycat")


I. *

Since that night when my eyes were first glazed
by your face in a friend's photo,
my heartbeats slowed down,
mellowed like the Matrix.

They continue to keep me suspended
in that split second when a man least expects
to meet that woman he must get to know for life.

Since our first "Harry met Sally" on the phone,
your voice began opening my ears
to strings more attractive
than the London Festival Orchestra,

and I just wanted to waltz with you,
watch and learn your every step.

Looking back over six years,
every one of our questions,
answers,
arguments,
secrets,
skeletons,
prides,
prejudices,
prayers
and comforts
make me realize
that love only survives
with a commitment to work,
sacrifice and compromise.

I know that we have done
a number on each other,
but I want us to number
the rest of our days together.

Love bears and endures all things,
and next to the Friend
of publicans and sinners,
you are my best friend
and blessing for each new day.

To find a wife is a good thing,
so are we ready for those times

to weep,
to laugh,
to mourn,
to dance,
to embrace,
to refrain from embracing,
to get,
to lose,
to keep,
to cast away,
to be silent,
to speak,
to love,
to hate,
to give birth,
to face death

while trusting Christ at all times,
pouring out our hearts before Him?

II.

Where will you be and Whose will you be,
when the King calls you to the wedding?

Are the matters of this world
too much for you to notice
the precious preparation
He presents to us?

We make light of His law
that we continue to break,
light of the burden
that this adds to our weight,
light of the judgment
and darkness that waits
for those that see darkness as light
and light as darkness.

We flee to our farms and merchandise,
showing little thanks except to shank
the servants who speak of this feast.

The sacrifice has been made
as the Lamb without blemish
shed His blood out of love
for sinners to take seats
at these all-you-can-eat tables
of milk, honey, bread,
fish, water and wine.

Yet, we act like we have no time,
and one day, this will become true
because when the King brings His wrath,
what can you and I do?

It's going to take so much more
than sneaking through the back door,
hoping to blend into the crowd
feeling proud and singing out loud
about our church attendance,
huge offerings, long prayers, baptisms,
prosperity shemes and end-time schisms,

without wearing a wedding garment
that can only be bought through Christ's blood.

The King calls many but chooses a few
based on His grace and not what we do.

How this can be, I hold no clue,
but I can at least see
that none of this even had to be:

the miracle of a harlot changed into a bride
walking down the aisle to Yeshua's right side.

Where will you be and Whose will you be
when the King calls you to the wedding?


* Dedicated to my new, beloved fiancee: thanks for saying, "Yes"

xoxoxoxo....infinity