The Grand Secret

The Grand Secret

"This is the true measure of love,
when we believe that we alone can
love, that no one could ever have
loved so before us, and that no one
will ever love in the same way
after us."

--Goethe
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This little quote is what my husband and I call our "Grand Secret." To other people, we look like ordinary mortals. People close to us know that we have a fantastic marriage and incredible children. But it is obvious to us that they do not know that the above quote refers to us. (never mind that it is like, 200 years old.)
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Day to day, we may not think about our Grand Secret. But, from time to time, we do, and it's funny, we are always together when it happens. Perhaps we are at a gathering of family or friends. All of a sudden, my husband will catch my eye across the room, and we smile. Yep, no one here knows our Grand Secret. Or we're at home. He is playing guitar, and I'm across the room quilting. He looks up at the same time I do, and, again, Are You Thinking What I'm Thinking? No one knows our Secret.
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Before you start gagging, there's a point here.
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Maybe you are going through one of those dry places in your marriage. Or a really rough spot. Or, your marriage never looked like the Grand Secret. Or maybe you're alone today.
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You know the scriptures that compare marriage to the relationship Christ has with His bride. "Husbands, love your wives as Christ loved the Church, and gave himself for her."
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But we did not invent the Grand Secret. In fact, neither did Goethe. Our Heavenly Father started the thing, before the foundations of the earth. Sometimes it is called The Greatest Story Ever Told. John 3:16--For God So Loved the World that He GAVE... Think about the word "so." So much, So fully, So freely. And then, of course, is "gave." He held nothing back, even though it cost Him everything. He thought we were worth it. He gave His Son--the only one who could do it for us. And why? Because relationship with us was *that* important to him.
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My husband and I treasure our relationship, because at one time we almost lost it entirely. If pressed, I will tell you that, yes, I desire to give myself to him that much. Because my relationship with my husband is *that* important to me. But, I will readily admit that when things are going well, status quo-like, I maybe don't work so hard on it, on a day-to-day basis. I forget, I neglect it.
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We all know that we neglect the Lord. But He NEVER neglects us. That is why we can always come to him and Begin Again. He is the perfect One, always forgiving and restoring.
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When He looks at us across a crowded room, He also says, It's our Grand Secret. But He wants to have the Secret with everyone in the room. Can we tell them, too?
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Prayer:
Father, I thank you that you have shared YOUR "grand secret" with us--that no one has ever loved us like You have. Help me to be one through whom you can share your secret with one who desperately needs you. And help me to show that love to my husband, as well, this week.
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Challenge:
Read the quote from Goethe every day this week. If this is not what your marriage looks like, find something to do to show your husband that you believe it can be true. Also, (or if you aren't married) let the quote bring to your mind the fact that "you are loved with an everlasting love" by our heavenly Father. Allow yourself to believe it, fully!
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Barbara Kellogg 2006