Love

Deep water cannot quench love, nor floods sweep it away. Were one to offer all he owns to purchase love, he would be roundly mocked. -Song of Songs 8:7

When I think of love, my wife comes to mind. Most people in a relationship probably think of their significant other first when speaking of love. A close second would be my kids, as should be the case with all who have kids. This is what the first part of this verse makes me think of. I don't like thinking about the second part of the verse, but I can see where it applies to my life by sacrificing promotion to be around the house more or my wife quitting her fulltime job to be a stay-at-home mom during the day and work part time during evenings and weekends when I can be with the kids. Some of those who take the promotions or keep their fulltime jobs disagree with those decisions with the exception of those who have to work that much to pay the bills.

If you can appreciate where I am coming from, God bless you and the Holy Spirit. This was the optional reading from today's morning prayer in honor of the virgin Clare, who was not married and did not have kids, but whose love for God was even greater to encourage us to have that same level of love for God no matter what our vocation in life. The fact that the Holy Spirit can bring such different meanings to the same words based on the differences in people reading or listening to those words just goes to illustrate God's supreme goodness. The words of scripture can even have different meanings to the same person as their situation changes and as they grow in their faith. One will never fully "get" all of scripture, so one should never stop listening to the word of God.