The Price of Love

Sometimes when I cannot sleep in the night, I open a book and read.  I can usually not get through more than a chapter or two before I'm placing the bookmark between the pages and turning out my flashlight.  Last night was different.  I have a book beside the bed that is one of the "Chicken Soup" series - this one is for pet lovers.  Last night's stories, one after the other, kept making me reach for the tissues, as story after story was one of the loss of a beloved pet.  In one such account, a small boy was trying to deal with the death of his little dog.  He told his father that he never wanted another dog for the rest of his life because it hurt too much when they died.  His father said, "Yes, son, but that is the price we pay for love."  I have heard many people say that they never want another pet, for the same reason.  When Syd and I had to have Ranger put down, though the loss was huge, I actually looked forward to having another pet.  It took us three years of praying and searching for the one that we thought the Lord would want us to have, but we just knew that the daily joy of having another dog far outweighed the sadness that would come at the end of his life.

When I read the line that the father spoke to his son I thought about the price of love.  We celebrated our 31st anniversary recently and there truly is a certain "price" that every person puts in to a relationship when they choose to blend two lives together into one.  Our very life is invested in the marriage relationship.

The Bible says that a marriage of man and woman is to reflect the relationship that Jesus Christ has with His church.  The church is made up of individuals who have given their lives over to Christ because He shed His blood and died upon the cross to secure their only hope of being reconciled to the Heavenly Father.  A believer gave himself/herself over once, in initial salvation; then it is a daily love for Christ that moves him forward in a consistent, obedient walk, all the way to Heaven.  Jesus Christ paid the ultimate price of love!

When Christ was upon earth, His only desire was to do the Father's will.  His whole life was invested in one goal.  The ministry of Jesus was short upon the earth.  He was truly born to die.  There was no other way, but by this Spotless Lamb, to take away sin in an individual's life.   After His life ended on earth and He rose again from the dead.  His ministry in heaven continues now and He will be the final Judge in the future; and the Bride of Christ will be united once and for all with her Bridegroom. What a plan God had for the ages!

These truths are great cause for meditation.  I hope that anyone reading this who has not put their faith in this great Lover of our souls, will do it today. He paid the ultimate price of love for you!