Sacred Love: Closing Thoughts

A Series of Longing from the Song of Songs

I welcome love that accepts me and supports me for who I am.

Sacred love is for all of us.
It flows from God.
Through friends.
Through partners.
Even through the way we learn to love ourselves.

It invites us to be heard.
To be affirmed.
To be valued – like gold and frankincense.
To be known. To be connected.

It is love that we hold for ourselves.
Each other.
Our families.
Our neighbors.
Our communities.

The Song of Songs tells us a love story.
It teaches us about longing,
delight,
choosing,
knowing,
and resting.

The love story belongs to us all.
Every soul.
In every season.
Wherever love is true. Safe. Mutual.

Sacred love is something to strive for.
It is worth waiting for.
It is worth protecting.
It is worth refusing to settle for anything less.

Because sacred love is the place where we are fully seen, fully held, and fully at rest.

Place me like a seal over your heart, like a seal on your arm; for love is as strong as death.

— Song of Solomon 8:6

May the God who IS Love, draw you into an intimate relationship with Him, with others, and with your own soul. Amen.

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How would you define Sacred Love?

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Sacred Love: Rest

A Series of Longing from the Song of Songs

I welcome the rest where love settles and stays.

Two hearts.
Two souls.
Two bodies.
Breathing in the same moment.
The body exhales, the heart’s rhythm slows, and the tingling warmth carries you to another time. Another place.
Where love becomes the gentle glow.

The Song of Songs hints at this sacred connection —
the resting under the apple tree,
the leaning into the beloved,
the stillness that follows delight.
Quiet.
Unassuming.
Presence.

Rest is its own kind of intimacy.
It is the trust that allows us to settle,
to be held,
to let the moment linger.
Safe.
Secure.
Free to simply be.

This is where our guard slips away.
We melt away fears and frustrations.
We open ourselves up to love.
To be fully known.
By God and our beloved.

Love is the rest.
It is the reset.
It is the sacred pause.
To return to ourselves and to others.

His left arm is under my head, and his right arm embraces me.

— Song of Solomon 2:6

May we find rest in love —
the kind that settles our spirit,
and reminds us that we are safe to simply be. Amen.

Image Credit: “Euan’s Apple Tree”
by Lynn Cadger
is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

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Sacred Love: Mutual Delight

A Series of Longing from the Song of Songs

I welcome love where mutual delight is shared and received.

Two hearts meeting in the same place,
at the same time,
with the same yes—
this is where mutual delight begins.

Delight is active.
It’s shared.
Reciprocated.
Alive.

It is the moment when love becomes a dance—
a sacred dance.
in presence,
in breath,
in shared delight.

The Song of Songs celebrates this holy dance.
Two people–
chosen,
known,
desired,
Delighting in one another
fully present and vulnerable, with nothing held back.

Mutual delight is a gift from God—
meant to bind two souls in a love made holy by God.

I belong to my beloved, and his desire is for me.

— Song of Solomon 7:10

May you know the joy of mutual delight—the kind that fills you with awe and wonder—and gives you the freedom to explore and discover the depths of true love. Amen.

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Sacred Love: The Garden

A Series of Longing from the Song of Songs

I welcome love that nourishes what is tender and
cultivates what is sacred within me.

There is a garden inside us all —
a place of fragrance and fruit,
a place where love takes root,
where beauty waits patiently to be seen.

The Song of Songs leads us into the garden—
A place of pomegranates and flowers,
inviting us to discover the sweetness.
A place where we cultivate,
nurture,
and tend to ourselves,
and to each other.

Love is like a garden.
It needs tending, cultivation, and nourishment.
It grows when we feed it,
water it,
and pull the weeds when needed.
When we choose to care,
and listen to what God has planted within.

Awake, north wind, and come, south wind. Blow on my garden, that its fragrance may spread everywhere.

— Song of Solomon 4:16

May you discover the garden within you —
the places where love is growing, the places waiting to be tended, the places ready to bloom.
May you nurture what is sacred, and cultivate what is good. Amen.

Image Credit: “My photo of Butchart Gardens” by DavidK-
Oregon is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

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Sacred Love: Being Desired

A Series of Longing from the Song of Songs

I welcome love that desires me — wholeheartedly.

The longing to be desired runs deep in our veins.
Instinctual, yes.
Human, yes.
Holy, even.

We long to be desired.
Not just seen
but wanted.
Not just appreciated
but cherished.
Not just noticed
but drawn in.

It’s more than “I see you.”
It’s “I want you because you matter to me.
Because you complete something in me.”

We all have a need to be desired
for kindness,
for wisdom,
for direction,
for presence,
for comfort.

Desire is filled by
presence,
beauty,
body,
essence
Your all.

The Song of Songs sings.
It celebrates.
It delights in every dip and valley,
In every high and low,
of sweetness,
apples,
nectar,
honey.

Chapter 7 is a dance of praise —
a lover gently caressing from top to bottom.
Without shame.
Without fear.
Pure sacred love.
Like the desire God has for us.

It is holy boldness. It is a sacred longing. It is the joy of connection
two humans,
One God.

The body doesn’t separate from the soul.
It honors spirit, mind, flesh, and breath.
A garden of delight
trich colors,
sweet ripe fruit,
an aroma that tickles the senses.

This is the gift of love.
Available to all who wish to partake.
Rooted in covenant.
Personal.
Intimate.
And sacred because God is in it.

“Your stature is like that of the palm, and your breasts like clusters of fruit. I said, ‘I will climb the palm tree; I will take hold of its fruit.’” Song of Solomon 7:7–8

May you feel the beauty of being desired —
the wonder of who you are.
May love kiss you with delight,
and meet you in the places you never knew you had. Amen

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by VIc Lic is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

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Sacred Love: Being Known

A Series of Longing from the Song of Songs

I welcome love that knows me—my body and my mind—fully, gently, and with tender loving care.

As we go deeper into love,
after being chosen,
comes the longing to be known.

Known in the quiet places of your soul.
The places you guard.
To the place where you let love speak—
wildly.
boldly.
with passion.

The Song of Songs is a book of poetry.
Two lovers—
emotionally,
spiritually,
and physically connected,
in ways that stretch beyond human understanding.

They know each other’s scent.
Each other’s voice.
Each other’s presence.
Each other’s body.
And still — they bless one another with delight.

Sacred love says,
“I am here with you, as you are.
I will gaze at you and take you in.
Into my heart. Into my body.”

It is the tremble.
The quiver.
The moan.
The release.

To be known is to be safe.
To be held.
to be loved in the way God intended — 
with reverence,
with joy.

“My beloved spoke and said to me, ‘Arise, my darling, my beautiful one, come with me.’” — Song of Solomon 2:10

May you feel the courage to be known.
May sacred love meet you in your secret places. Amen.

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licensed under CC BY 2.0. 

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Sacred Love: Being Chosen

A Series of Longing from the Song of Songs

I welcome love that chooses me with intention, tenderness, and joy.

Deeper than being seen,
deeper than being pursued,
is the longing to be chosen.

Chosen for you.
Your laugh.
Your smile.
Your eyes.
Your tender heart.

It’s that feeling of someone looking into your eyes and saying, “I see you, and I want to be with you — and in you.”

Yes.
You.

It is in that moment that love becomes intentional.
Desire meets heart.
Heart meets mind.
Affection becomes commitment.
Commitment becomes direction.

And the Song of Songs is all about this.
Bold.
Mutual.
Desire.

The lovers choose each other —
with their words,
their longing,
their delight.

They choose each other
tenderly,
kindly,
intimately.

Sacred love meets you where you are and moves forward.
It is the catalyst for togetherness.
Fully.
Freely.
Surrender.

Sacred love surrenders —
first to God,
then to your spouse —
and builds a foundation for a lifetime of joy, love, and delight.

“My beloved is mine and I am his.”

— Song of Solomon 2:16

May you feel the beauty of being chosen.
Loved.
Delighted in. Amen

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Sacred Love: A Valentine’s Day Reflection

A Series of Longing from the Song of Songs

I welcome love that honors, cherishes, and meets me where I am.

Valentine’s Day can stir many things — good, bad, and indifferent.
But beneath it all lives a deep, primal need for love.
Sacred love.
The mutual kind. Tender. And true.

Sacred love says,
I see you.
I want to pursue you.
I delight in you.
I choose you again and again.

It moves toward you with intention. It rests in you with joy. It honors the beauty you carry — even the parts you hide. Or ignore.

And on this day, when the world is full of roses and romance, may you remember this:

You are worthy!
You are worthy of a love that cherishes your soul.
A love that listens.
A love that protects.
A love that celebrates your existence.
A love that reflects the heart of God.

Is your lover loving you like God does?

Place me like a seal over your heart, like a seal on your arm;
for love is as strong as death.

— Song of Solomon 8:6

Photo Credit: Roses from my beloved

May this day remind you that you are deeply loved by God.
May you be open to receiving the sacred love that God offers.
May you feel held, chosen, and treasured. Amen.

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Sacred Love: Being Delighted In

A Series of Longing from the Song of Songs

I welcome love that delights in who I am — not who I try to be.

There is a longing deeper than being seen or being pursued.
It is the longing to be delighted in.
That feeling of bringing someone joy.
Or causing someone to smile.
Or being the twinkle in someone’s eye.

Delight says,
I want to be with you.
I want to see you smile.
I appreciate you.
I enjoy your company.
I cherish you.

Think about that.

If you are not sensing these feelings in your relationship, it may be time for an honest talk.

In the Song of Songs, delight is everywhere.
It is spoken.
It is sung.
It is celebrated.

The lovers do not hide their joy in one another.
They speak it.
They name it.
They savor it.

Sacred love invites you into that same truth —
that you are not only wanted,
not only pursued,
but delighted in.

Delight is different from desire.
Desire reaches for you.
Delight rests in you.

Is your lover resting in you?

Like an apple tree among the trees of the forest is my beloved among the young men. I delight to sit in his shade,
and his fruit is sweet to my taste.

— Song of Solomon 2:3

May you feel the sparkle of being delighted in.
May you find joy within you and around you. Amen.

“Tulips & apple tree | Tulipany i jabłonka” by Maciej Szczepaniak is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

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Sacred Love: Being Pursued

A Series of Longing from the Song of Songs

I welcome love that seeks me and chooses me for who I am.

There is a longing to be pursued.
At least, that has been my experience.
Maybe it’s a female thing — maybe it’s a human thing.

It’s the longing to be wanted.
To be chosen.
To be treasured.
Not because it is “the right thing to do” but because it feels so right.

When someone pursues you, and the relationship begins to take root, there is a season of euphoria —
or maybe it’s desire, maybe it’s wonder —
that feeling of I can’t get enough of you.

Being pursued carries questions.
Will the time and effort be worth it?
How will the journey go?
Will it be smooth sailing?
Or will there be gusts of wind that throw it off course?
Or will the boat capsize, leaving no survivors?

Yet sacred love tells a different story.

In the Song of Songs, pursuit is:
Bold.
Eager.
Joyful.
Mutual.

And why is that?
Because God is navigating the boat.

The lovers row toward one another — with love, joy, and anticipation.

Sacred pursuit is about being wanted.
It is about someone seeing your worth and moving toward you because of it.  
And it is about God reminding you that you were created for connection —
that you deserve to be pursued with tenderness and intention.

It is a gentle invitation to commune with God in a way that stirs your heart, a way that makes YOU whisper, “I can’t get enough of You.”
Because the deeper truth is this:
God delights in you more than you can imagine.

Tell me, you whom I love, where you graze your flock and where you rest your sheep at midday? Why should I be like a veiled woman beside the flocks of your friends?

— Song of Solomon 1:7

May you feel the excitement of being pursued —
the beauty, the delight, the anticipation.
May sacred love draw you toward a lover who rows toward you, listening as God navigates the way. Amen

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