I was in college when I first eyed my husband. He was sitting on the floor at a friend’s Bible study gathering with his back against the wall, dressed in scruffy jeans and a red flannel shirt with the sleeves rolled halfway up his muscular forearms. His thick brown hair and chocolate-brown eyes left me weak in the knees.
And the best part was that this handsome hunk of a man had a tattered Bible in his lap. He laughed easily, prayed humbly, and read intently. I was smitten from the first time I laid eyes on Steve Jaynes.
After a few weeks, he finally asked me out on a date. We continued seeing each other over the next several weeks. One night, Steve asked me to a college football game, and I agreed to go. Then he said, “Can I just ask? Will you go with me to all of the football games for the rest of the year?”
“I’m not going to answer that question,” I replied. “You’ll just have to ask me each week.”
Looking back on those early days, what I was really saying was that I wanted to be pursued. None of this blanket invitation for the entire Fall business. I wanted to be wooed and won. Even though he had me the moment I saw him sitting on the shag carpet floor, I didn’t want him to know that.
I wanted him to show me I was worth putting forth the effort to capture my heart. Isn’t that the desire of every woman’s heart?
And nobody does it better than God.
The entire Bible from Genesis 3 to Revelation 22:21 is a record of God’s passionate pursuit of the human heart. Noah, Abraham, Ruth, Naomi, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Joshua, Samuel, a string of kings, both good and bad, intermingled with prophets wooing and warning God’s people.
We end the last chapter of the Old Testament with silence. And then 400 years later, God breaks the holy hush with the cry of a babe in a manger as the story picks back up in Bethlehem.
From God’s first question in Genesis 3:9, “Where are you?” until Jesus’ final words in John 19:30, “It is finished,” we see God drawing mankind with cords of kindness that sometimes appear anything but kind—drawing people back to Himself with ties of love (Hosea 11:4).
We’ve wiggled and wrangled trying to break free of those cords, but He continues to lasso us with love and draw us in again.
Passionate pursuit. He’s pulled out all the stops. Moved heaven and earth—literally—to win us back, to reestablish the glory that was lost in the Garden.
Most of us feel that we have to pursue God continually, as if He is hard to find. And as long as we believe that, our faith journey will be difficult. It will be arduous.
But didn’t Jesus say, “Come to me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:28-30)?
And yet, easy and light are not words many of us would use to describe our faith journey.
God tunes the violin and pulls the bow across the strings of our heart and waits for us to recognize the melody wooing us into relationship with him.
God has had His eye on you since before the foundation of the earth. The Message paraphrase says it this way: “Long before he laid down earth’s foundations, he had us in mind, had settled on us as the focus of his love, to be made whole and holy by his love” (Ephesians 1:4 MSG).
My heart resonates with the words of Simon Tugwell: “So long as we imagine it is we who have to look for God, we must often lose heart. But it is the other way about—He is looking for us.”
Sweet friend, I want you to ponder that truth today: God is pursuing you! Through the beauty of a flower in wintertime. The sun reflecting off the snow. The whisper of the wind. The love letters in His Word.
Heavenly Father, thank You for pursuing me! I would not even have known that I needed You if You hadn’t stirred my heart in the first place. Open my eyes to see the ways that You are pursuing me still. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Leave a comment and share one way that you have sensed God wooing you over the past few months.
Digging Deeper
Friend, this is a message that changed my life. I discovered that closeness to God wasn’t accomplished by doing more for Him but being more in touch with Him throughout the day. If you would like to learn more about how to recognize God’s passionate pursuit of your heart every day, then this book is for you: A Sudden Glory: God’s Lavish Response to Your Ache for Something More. It also includes a Bible Study Guide.
How’s your prayer life? Need a little help? Check out Praying for Your Child From Head to Toe and
Praying for Your Husband from Head to Toe… 30 Day Guides to Powerful and Effective Scripture-Based Prayer. (Perfect for Grandmas praying for their grandchildren!)
Comments 23
God covered me with things before I knew I needed them. He has provided for me so that I can help others see the message of what a personal relationship with Jesus can do for them. God has wooed me with the perspective of hope in His ways over mine…
Author
Beautiful!
Bless you for today’s message! God has given me my first grandchild and I see Him every moment as I hold that precious one in my arms. Every little part of her is a miracle of His creation. Thank you Jesus for Freya! Freya was born with serious health issues but God!! He will I believe show us n the doctors who He is!
Amen. I TRUST THAT GOD WILL DO GREAT THINGS FOR YOUR GRANDCHILD.
After tumor and shunt surgeries, complete memory lapses, and four weeks in rehab, God has shown me how invested He is in my life through the kind words and deeds from people around me. I know He has a purpose for me in my retirement and in spite of my recovering health.
Thank you for this message. I was taken out of a job I loved. HE is preparing me for the plans for me. I am trusting HIM thru this storm!
Thank you for describing the thoughts of my heart. I’m desperately pursuing God’s physical healing, but now I see He’s pursuing me to trust & lean into him, my Healer!! God bless you, Sharon!
Hope, Thank you for sharing what I myself have been doing . To see He is pursuing me to tust & lean into Him, my Healer!! too. <3
Hope, Thank you for sharing what I myself have been doing . To see He is pursuing me to tust & lean into Him, my Healer!! too. <3
Thank you. I needed this today
Just beautiful and heart warming.
Thank you for your wonderful words.
Blessings and love ❤️
Great words for today! “Come to Me”
by Dan Forrest, choral piece adapted from Matthew 11: 25, 28-29
I direct a church choir and this piece is so beautiful, but really hard. We worked on it last night and God is speaking to me today through your words, this song and His love for me.
Listen to it. Beautiful!
Thank you!
Good morning, Blessings to everyone. I’m so grateful for God’s Continued Blessings and Love for me. His Goodness is running after me. As the song says….All of my life HE The Great I AM has been faithful. Oh I LOVE HIM SO. Thank you Sharon for always being an inspiration.
I have seen how God has blessed my children and grandchildren. Thank you Lord.
Sharon I was literally at my desk trying to compose myself and not break down in a full sobbing situation at my desk. This truly was heartfelt. Thank you for sharing and thank you Father God for your hope and faithfulness for each and every one of us! This has truly inspired me once again. At a time of my life of uncertainty, I can depend on God to be right there with me. I look forward to reading these daily.
With age comes wisdom!
So they say.
I have felt God persuing me time and time again. I’m 72 and seen His Righteous Right Hand in all areas of my life! Thank you my sweet savior ❤️
God has been wooing me to have unwavering trust in Him for where He wants to take me in this next season of my life.
Beautifully said. I love this and thank you Lord for pursing me.🙏🏻
God’s love and pursuit have been evident in my life. After a divorce and three surgeries to eliminate a health issue, at 33 years old he is still creating opportunities for me, instilling hope for a bright future.
After becoming a Christian, I fell into sinful relationships several times, even after marriage. I could have been lost forever, but God pulled me “out of the mire” each time and has healed me from love addiction. Without Jesus, I do not know where I would be.
God has been wooing me my whole life and I have finally opened my heart to listen intently to his words.
I see the beauty in all that I have, even in my alcoholic son.
Thank you, Sharon!
“God is pursuing me”, this encourages and reminds me of His love for me and His creation. But sisters, what does it then mean when God says, “seek me, when you seek me with all your heart, then I shall be found” I have paraphrased the verse(s).
Thanks
This was exactly what I needed today. Sharon, what beautiful writing. Thank you!