Making Love My Heartsong — Nicole DeAnn Lawrence

Emotionally this has been a trying week for me. There isn’t a big storm cloud in my life, nothing catastrophic has come my way, but I seem to be making mountains out of my molehills in all areas of my life. Usually I will take that burden and throw it over my shoulder like a backpack filled of stones and let it weigh me down until I am utterly exhausted. My prayer tonight was, God take these stones, unpack these burdens and give me a new perspective.

As I was reading in Colossians those stones slowly started turning into pebbles. In my own wandering I was weary, but in God’s perfect provision I am refreshed. God didn’t just throw random words into the pages of a book, they are living and breathing and always ready to reach into our hearts. The more I press into truly studying the Bible, the more I fall in love with all its teachings. I’ve learned God doesn’t just tell us what to do and expect us to fill in the gaps with the how, I would certainly be an F student if that were the case. He instructs us as any good teacher would with a thoughtful plan. In Colossians 3 Paul tells us believers to put to death our sinful nature so we might be holy. We must clothe ourselves in all the characteristics that are opposite of our nature. Well I don’t know about you, but that seems like a test I’m not prepared to pass! Each day I wake up and Satan is already throwing his best at me; if I’m not prepared I will absolutely fail.

Here is where we get to the how – “Above all clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony.” Colossians 3:14. The words of God are so lyrical and just bring joy to my soul. When I heard this, immediately all that I have been burdened with came into a clear picture. All the chaos, the bickering, the miscommunication sounds like nails on a chalkboard, but through love we can hear the sweet sound of harmony. Think of the song that every time you hear it, the noise around you fades away and your heart instantly smiles. Our heart song is peace, which is found through love – Christ’s love for us, our love for Him, and our love for others. Out of that heart song of perfect peace we open our mouths and the only thing that comes out is unfiltered gratitude.

“Out of that heart song of perfect peace we open our mouths and the only thing that comes out is unfiltered gratitude.”

The next three sets of instructions are about marriage, parenting and work. As we connect the dots of this passage it all points back to that verse. Your marriage has hit a rough patch? Clothe yourself in love. Parenting has become one big struggle? Clothe yourself in love. Work is endlessly tiresome? Clothe yourself in love.

God isn’t promising that the chaos around us won’t continue. I know that when I open my eyes tomorrow there is a good chance one or both of the girls will be crying by 10:00 AM, my husband will say something that irritates me, and my job will nag at me. The difference is I will choose love. As Christ’s love pours into me, then through me peace that is only found from above will fill my home. Today I thank God for these pebbles in my life, and I will stack them like Joshua did as a reminder of God’s faithfulness to remember the next day, and the next and the next as a roadmap back to my north, because God knows I will find myself in this place again and this time I will remember how love was my heart song. (Joshua 4:19-24)