The lover's call by Tracy Williamson

"My lover spoke and said to me, 'Arise, my darling, my beautiful one and come with me.'" ( Song of Songs 2:10 NIV)
Today I am going to the wedding of a lovely friend and as I thought about the coming celebration I sensed the longing of our Heavenly lover, Jesus.  He is calling us to come to Him in a new way; to arise in our identity as His 'beautiful one' and to come where He calls us to come, to be with Him.  This call is equally to men as to women.  We are all His bride, His chosen ones and He is calling us into a place of newness, of deeper love, of intimacy and joy in His presence. 
Sometimes when I come to be with the Lord it is more of a duty than a joy.  I know I ought to be having a quiet time or praying about those I know of in need of His help.  My prayers can be more like a shopping list than an intimate conversation between lovers!  Maybe you too feel that sense of obligation overriding your relationship with Him at times?  But today He is whispering to us, 'arise, come with me.'
Where does He want to take us?  In the passage the lover wants to show and draw the beloved into the realisation that spring is here.  'The winter is past' He says, 'the rains are over and gone.' Have you been stuck into a situation or a state of heart that there has felt no end to?  I felt in my spirit a deep sense of your weariness and heartache.  The 'rains' of struggle and barrenness have been going on for so long, the ground of your life seeming hard and unyielding. 
No hope, no promise of sunshine. Weariness is crushing you as if you  cannot move or step forward in any way. But your lover is calling today 'Arise, my beautiful one and come with me.'
When you hear His invitation and even with the tiniest yes, step forward in response.  you enter into His embrace and find yourself held by that love that takes every weight and shares your every concern. His understanding has no limit and He wants to whisper words into your heart that will bring you a new deep level of illumination and joy.  Recently I was trying to complete my new book, a 40 day devotional, but I had left it so much to the last minute.  I felt deeply ashamed because I knew I'd been running away from doing it but I didn't know why.  I also found that whenever I sat down at the computer to write a massive wave of exhaustion would come over me and I would be writing out of a fog of trying to keep awake.  I felt so upset with myself and couldn't understand why this was happening yet again as its something that has always happened whenever I've been doing something important.  So I was fighting this weariness and the shame of leaving things so late, but one day Jesus spoke softly in my heart as I was struggling and said 'come aside with me.' I didn't know quite what He meant but I left the computer and went to a comfy chair and sat with my eyes closed.  I thought I might just go to sleep but suddenly thoughts came into my heart about the fear that I carried throughout my childhood.  Fear of being mocked, judged and found wanting.  He said to me, 'you buried all your hopes and joy in trying new things because of what you knew might happen and you also buried your fear because you didn't want it to show and be a handle that others could use against you.  But all that burying and hiding took great energy and that is the root of why you feel so fatigued when you try to do something valuable.  You need to stop fighting and let me bathe you with my love and bring healing to the fears and sadness.' 
This was incredible to me but it made so much sense.  I felt overcome that my heavenly Father and lover had shown me so tenderly what was really happening.  He knew the root of my weariness and it was as if a door opened for me to step out of the winter of buried fear and hurt and into the spring of new hope and trust and joy in creativity.  I am not there yet, but I am stepping through that door and know He has so much still to whisper to me of His words of healing, renewing love.  Springtime is coming and is for you too.  He knows what has caused the rains of winter in your life and heart and wants to draw you into His love today to open your eyes to the beauty of spring: the beauty of being loved, forgiven, understood, and trusted as His friend.  To know that weariness of hopelessness and struggle slipping from you and new strength and purpose arising in its place.  I feel that for someone reading this your weariness and 'winter' is to do with sadness in your family, a longing for something to change but as yet no sign or hope, the feeling that you should be doing more but you have tried everything....He is saying to you with such love. 'Beloved One, I am proud of you and nothing is wasted of all you have done and all your prayers, love and tears are counting.  Trust it all into my care afresh.  I am proud of you.  you will see the answer to your heart's longing.  Come into my embrace and let me renew you in my joy.'
May you take steps into the 'springtime' of His love today and hear His voice of love whispering to you 'the great and marvellous things He wants to show you.'

Tracy Williamson is an author and speaker living in Kent with her great friend and ministry partner Marilyn Baker.  Tracy has written several books with her latest being The Father's Kiss published by Authentic Media in 2018.  Tracy loves listing to the Lord, reading, walking in the country with her Hearing Dog, Goldie and spending time with lovely friends.