Music and poetry mean a great deal to me, though I'm not much of a poet or musician. *coughs* Actually, I'm really not a poet or musician at all. Regardless of my lack of ability in these areas, I greatly enjoy Elizabeth Barrett Browning, and I loved this section from Sonnet VIII from Sonnets from the Portuguese.
And princely giver, who hast brought the gold
And purple of thine heart, unstained, untold,
And laid them on the outside of the wall
For such as I to take or leave withal,
In unexpected largesse? am I cold,
Ungrateful, that for these most manifold
High gifts, I render nothing back at all?
Not so; not cold,--but very poor instead.
Doesn't it sound like our relationship with the Lord? Why would such an One ever love me? How could He have demonstrated such love, yet leave it there for us to take or reject? I've often thought about how vulnerable He chooses to be. He knows that people will spurn His love and cruelly reject His very name, yet He still holds out His hands offering life and everything that makes it worth living. Even though I'm so very poor, I possess something He values. I give Him back what He gives me, and He blesses me for it! It's not hard to love Someone like that.
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