The “Intimate Kingdom" is a site focused on the role the Song of Songs plays in the Kingdom of God, and one's personal relationship with Christ and His body. (apart from the religion of "churchianity") Take a look around. If you like what you read so far - feel free to download the free eBook, and then subscribe to get new posts.
Feb 10 2020
Recently I watched the movie, A Star is Born. For those with more sensitive ears such as myself, it has raw language, and a little bit of sexual content. But the acting was so good, and the story so powerful, that I was personally left only with the impression I had just watched a metaphorical masterpiece.
What struck me, as it often does in classic love stories, is the resemblance to the greatest love story of all time…the Song of Songs. One just can’t escape it. An unknown and disadvantaged young woman is discovered by a man of great status, who falls passionately in love with her, and gives her a new life. In this case it is a woman named Alley (played by Lady Gaga) singing in a small-town bar, and a very famous musician named Jackson Maine (played by Bradley Cooper) stumbling in on his way through town, and hearing her sing for the first time.
He’s intrigued, to say the least. But what happens next …
Feb 06 2020
Do you know the song Artificial Flowers by Bobby Darin? It’s about an orphan girl forced to make paper decorations for rich women’s hats. She dies and finds out that God has a special garden just for her, with real flowers she doesn’t have to abrade her little fingers on.
This touching song was shared with me several years ago, and then recalled this week when reflecting on the Shulamite’s story. I’ve also been thinking about my own past and wondering what to share about it. We all have them, I know: stories of abuse, regrets, or both. The Shulamite woman talks about hers briefly, because she has moved on.
❀∙❀∙❀
🥀 … One of the things I’d like to mention is …
Jan 24 2020
Jay Ferris had a striking analogy that was not always understood at first.
“The Kingdom of God is like a drop dead gorgeous woman
who walks into a room full of women….gender neutral.”
The point was not this woman is beautiful, or that she is confident in her beauty, but rather the reaction she gets from the other women. Jay went on to explain the “gender neutral” part:
“A man generally has to either say something or do something to get the same effect. And if a man either says something or does something that is prettier than what the other men in the room are saying or doing, it’s the same dynamic that goes on. It’s seen best when Jesus came to Jerusalem.All the experts who were experts before He got there, wanted to kill Him.”
What a poignant image this is, considering there was a houseful of women in …
Jan 22 2020
A brief pause here, to share a lesson I learned this week. As it often happens, it’s related to where we are in the Song of Songs. It is:
Telling others too much, too soon.
Doing so may feel good in the moment, but the results do not!
Think about it. Declaring “he brought me into his chambers” (1:4) was a true statement for the Shulamite, but it brought out the immaturity and hidden jealousy of the young women who heard her.
They immediately scanned her for faults. They judged her unworthy of a high calling. And they were closed off from rejoicing with her.
In the next post we’ll look at the stunning way she responded. (Sorry, I don’t mean to keep dangling that!) :-)
But meanwhile I got to thinking…
The Woman At The Well – She’s Not Who You Think She Is
Made Perfect in Love
THE SONG – By Guest Author Cheryl McGrath
Esther in Ephesians – For Such a Time As This!
A Tour of a Secret Garden
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