first love – The Song of Songs

Can You Come Out to Play?

Pamela — Tue, 18 Aug 2020 11:49:19 +0000

There is something about the innocent, carefree season of childhood that I think we all long to reconnect with. But it’s not easy. I saved a meme that read: “Children smile an average of 400 times a day; adults 15. Children laugh about 150 times a day; adults 6. Children play between 4 to 6 hours a day; adults maybe 20 minutes. What happened?¹” When a spiritual father was on his death bed, I asked him what he would wish for me to do more of after he is gone. His response? “Play more.” That was not the answer I expected! But the truth is, play (and its twin, “rest”) is ...

Precious Myrrh Between My Breasts (Song 1:13)

Pamela — Sun, 31 May 2020 17:28:57 +0000

My beloved is like a pouch of myrrh that rests between my breasts.- Song 1:13. Anna, I am speaking to you today, a fictional daughter, who has a name that’s dear to my heart. My Mom always thought it’d be nice to be called Anna. If she could change her name. So precious Anna, draw close. I have something to show you. It’s something I hope you can also smell. See it here? This small, tightly-bound satchel hanging between my breasts? It’s called “Myrrh.” Go ahead, open it. The crystals are beautiful in color, aren’t they? Some call them “tears.” And for good reason. I'll try to be brief...

The Courage of the Bridal Mare

Pamela — Wed, 22 Apr 2020 14:41:30 +0000

I’m noticing something in my study of the Song of Songs. Translations cannot be fully trusted to give an accurate picture of all that should be conveyed. Some seem to even tamper with the meaning, watering verses down to make them less offensive. I blame religion for this, who is knowingly or unknowingly always coming up with ways to strip the Bride of her association with Christ’s offense — thus making people fit their perfect ideal of “who gets in, and who stays out.” In 1:9 for example, a few versions translate “my mare” as a “company of horses,” when the Hebrew is clearly a female horse, who is among Pharaoh’s horses. But of course this would be a problem for the ancient mind. Often, and for a variety of suggestive details, a comparison of a woman to a mare or filly in poetic literature was a provocative one. In addition to that, horses in general were often associated with a pagan, extravagant lifestyle as well. But there's more to it than even this!

But First … a Visit From the Now

Pamela — Tue, 05 Nov 2019 19:29:23 +0000

Before jumping into a new schedule writing about the Song of Songs, I thought it best to share a more personal note first, to sort of ease into things a bit. But at the same time, I don't know how to do this exactly! For sometimes life has hurricane-like "twists and turns" that seem to stun us for awhile, making it almost impossible to put into words what just happened, or how it happened. It helps to know we are in a spiritual "war," however. And sometimes there will be setbacks. But it doesn't feel good to suffer an injury, or have regrets. This is what the following post wants to address.

“Just” a Woman?

Pamela — Fri, 13 Mar 2015 12:39:09 +0000

I just returned home from a long trip, and although finding the time to “study” the Song of Songs has been difficult, I take comfort that the Lord knows where I am right now, however, and can find me. Have you noticed He always seems to be pursuing us?

Last weekend I felt one of His …

Opening A Peony Bloom

Pamela — Fri, 30 May 2014 20:19:17 +0000

This is another “ant trail” that is a little off the verse-by-verse study of the Song, but I want to share something really cool that I saw. For those who know, I live next door to my Mom, and she has (which came with her house) a lot of flower gardens that need tending. I …

As a Mare Among Yoked Stallions (Song 1:9)

Pamela — Sat, 01 Feb 2014 19:25:25 +0000

O my darling companion, I see you as my mare among Pharaoh's chariots! Song 1:9 The journey ahead is not for the faint of heart. Courage is needed to survive the heat, and eyes to see what He sees. This is how you will carry Him into His victory!

My Goal This Year Is…

Pamela — Fri, 17 Jan 2014 13:36:35 +0000

I just returned from a trip, and something happened that I'd like to share. It was so beautiful to me at the moment, that if it wasn't for the people I got to see, I almost feel it was worth the trip alone to hear it! ....

The Impatient Patience of Love (An Intro to Song 1:7)

Pamela — Wed, 01 Jan 2014 02:25:23 +0000

"I am tired, Beloved, of chafing my heart against the want of you; Of squeezing it into little inkdrops and posting it. And I scald alone, here, under the fire of the great moon."

Being in love and in a wilderness - is there any more wrenching place to be?

House of Peace or House of Cards?

Pamela — Sat, 23 Nov 2013 19:58:38 +0000

King David, Solomon’s father, was said to be a man “after God’s own heart." Not so much after His mind, His purpose, His plans, but His heart. There’s something passionate in this that I can't shake. David was a visionary for the central part of God, the part that makes Him tick and from which everything flows. One of the ways David expressed this was in a desire for God to have a permanent place to call ‘home.’