Vicky Bentley’s Blog
Let Us Lodge In The Villages
Song of Solomon 7:10-13: I am my Beloved’s, and His desire is towards me. Come, my Beloved, let us go forth to the field; let us lodge in the villages, let us get up early to the vineyards; let us see if the vine has budded. Whether the grape blossoms are open, and the pomegranates are in bloom. There I will give you my love. The mandrakes give off a fragrance, and at our gates are pleasant fruits, all manner, new and old, which I have laid up for you, my beloved.
Let us . . .
He says there are three things He wants to do together with you:
V Lodge in the villages
Leaving the world behind and heading out, as it were, to pasture.
Setting yourself apart.
Intentionally avoiding all that diverts our concentration or hinders
so that we can attend upon the Lord without distraction.
This is our willful relinquishment of self so we can be wholly taken up with Christ.
You cannot have two masters, you can’t love Jesus and anyone else….
Whom will you serve?
V Get up early to the vineyards
:
Our soul is our vineyard;
and we have been entrusted with keeping it with all diligence (Prv 4:23).
How is your vineyard?
If you are anything like me, you can probably better describe the condition of someone else – like your child, husband, or friend – than you can yourself.
I take great comfort in Song 1:6:…mine own vineyard I have not kept…
we all need His help, we are inadequate in ourselves.
V See if the grape blossom is open and the pomegranates are in bloom:
What good motions and dispositions are in you that are young and tender?
Jesus wants to reveal them so you can look to Him to cultivate them.
He will protect and cherish, with loving, particular, meticulous care,
so none of those things get nipped, trampled, blasted, or rubbed off.
He will nurture that you may bring forth fruit unto perfection.
Isn’t that encouraging?
You need not fear showing Him the vineyard….
o He won’t shrink back at the disrepair
o No contamination can harm Him
o Nothing repulses Him
o He is a Healer…a Helper…a restorer of Hope!