Rendezvous: A Lover’s Meeting

My Beloved spoke, and said to me:
“Rise up, my love, my fair one,
And come away.”
 
(Solomon 2:10 NKJV)
 
 
. . . rendezvous, French for “a lover’s meeting.” The word literally means, “present yourselves.” In that literal translation is an excellent instruction on how to pray.
(Edward Hays, A Lenten Hobo Honeymoon)
 
 
 
 
On the first Friday of the Month, Dawn and Susie encourage us to randomly choose an entry from one of our journals to share with the community over at Beneath the Surface: Breath of Faith.
 
As part of my “hobo honeymoon,” this was a nice trip down memory lane, as today I randomly chose a journal that I kept the summer of 2010. That summer I had the joy of visiting my sister and her family in Scotland.
 
Part of my time there included taking a trek on my own along the Fife Coastal Path. Those two days hiking alone with the Beloved will always be a treasured memory of our relationship. When I returned home, it would have been easy to forget the “romance” of those days and neglect our relationship.
 
 
This was one of my rendezvous spots along the path,
where I met with my Beloved in Scotland.
 
The practice of keeping a journal keeps me connected to the passion of loving Jesus. It’s a tangible record of our love and His companionship, as I live out this earthly trek.
 
Here’s what I wrote almost 3 years ago, after I returned home from Scotland:
 
“Thank you Jesus for the invitation to come away–to live apart from the usual pressures of life. Thank you that I can be an artist. Thank you for leisure and the ability to linger in your presence. You know me inside out.”
 
 
 
A little love note from Him, the verse from Solomon 2:10, precedes this entry. He continues to invite me to “come away” with Him daily in my journal and on these creative jaunts inspired by others’ devotional writing.
 
Jesus and I didn’t go anywhere today. We spent the morning sorting through supplies in the art room, so that we can enjoy the leisure of art journaling and collage these coming weeks.
 
He so delights for us to pursue the desires of our hearts, and He has provided for me beyond my wildest dreams. Life is not always rosy, but I have been blessed with abundant joy, even in the midst of trying times. And little reminders of His love surround me everyday.
 
 
 
Linking up with:
 
 
 
 
 

Embryo: Something in an Early Stage of Development

 





I think a journal is like an embryo. It is the incubator for my writing life. The ideal place for thoughts and ideas to gestate, in their early stage of development.

 
Today I am linking up with Random Journal Day with Dawn and Susie over at Beneath the Surface: Breath of Faith.
 
Here’s the entry I randomly chose in a journal from 2010:

 


  
Tuesday, April 27, 2010 Morning. Rainy Day. Cold & Damp.

I woke up around 6am and decided to rouse myself from bed and begin the day. Right now the house is cluttered and dust laden. Barely enough time to make sure we have clean underwear. Final days of the semester mean I must make the most of every moment. Also preparing for trip . . . and keeping up with family and friends.
(That’s all I wrote in my journal that day.)
It’s strange when you go back to a journal entry looking for some seed of thought that might inspire greater things. In this entry, I notice that my life was very full. During that semester of life, I learned to accept that I had the normal amount of time, but it was divided amongst several different interests and pursuits.
Time to rest and reflect, even for a few lines in my journal. Barely time to do laundry. Never enough time or motivation to dust.
One key phrase in the paragraph, “making the most of every moment” gives a glimpse into my heart. Time and people are important to me. Cultivating relationships and nurturing the embryonic ideas that often generate from my ever active mind are seeds of who I am. See how a journal can reveal or affirm something about yourself!
I love keeping a journal. My journals are treasured, sacred places to process my days, to notice patterns and to discover truths about life. A journal can be a place of healing or a place to discover your purpose. Or even a springboard for blogging or other writing projects.
 
If you have a journal, and want to link up with Random Journal Day, the link is open all month.

Go now, write it on a tablet for them,
inscribe it on a scroll,
that for the days to come
it may be an everlasting witness.

(Isaiah 30:8 NIV)