Rejoicing over his bride...

I was in chapel the other day and one of the readings was Isaiah 62: 1-5. The passage specifically speaks about the coming salvation of Israel, but what really caught my attention was verse 5. It reads, "For as a young man marries a young woman, so shall your sons marry you, and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you." Again, this passage is specifically talking about God saving His bride, but the phrase "and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride" made me pause because in this statement is not a description of what is going to happen, but an assumption of something that already happens.

I think this is important for me as a husband because I lose track many times of the incredible joy that I have in my life because of my wife and I should never forget to rejoice over my bride. It is easy to get distracted by life and frustrated with all the responsibilities that come (though I know I have relatively few), but like Proverb 5 says "Let your fountain be blessed, and rejoice in the wife of your youth... be intoxicated always in her love."

I am still young and our marriage is still young, but I hope that the rejoicing and joy in our marriage only grows greater with time.

By the way I am going to make a shameless plug for my wife. If you have not checked it out Jacinda has a website with her photography on it. She also just opened an Etsy page at http://www.etsy.com/shop/jacindashields. She is a wonderful artist, so please check them out.