Lessons for Living | Ain't Complicated

I Flunked Song of Solomon 907

I wrote it for ninth graders and overshot the mark.

You may know I’m writing Old Testament lessons for high school freshmen. Recently I got to the sole lesson on the Song of Solomon.

The instructions I had were quite elementary:

Bride and Groom. Applies to marriage and to Christ and His church; we are focusing on Christ and His church. Good for married people. Relate to Eph 5. Use appropriate passages; skip explicit ones. To relate the Song of Solomon to the relationship between Jesus and His bride.

The lesson focus is that last sentence.

In addition to those mandated parameters, I had these of my own:

Make it practical for ninth graders.
Avoid eye-rolling stretching to make the passage point to Christ and the church.

Well, I finally settled on using these passages:

Song of Solomon 2:4 (85)
Song of Solomon 4:1-7 (176)
Song of Solomon 5:10-16 (143)
Song of Solomon 7:10 (107)
Song of Solomon 8:6,7 (217)

The numbers in parentheses tell you how many words I dedicated to each passage.

I began and ended the lesson with these paragraphs respectively:

Song of Solomon is a difficult, much-debated, little-understood book. Perhaps it describes a real-life romance. Perhaps it’s more a poem or play to instruct and encourage husbands and wives. Perhaps it’s an intricate allegory illustrating God’s relationship with His people. Perhaps it’s some combination of those. This lesson, though, will help you consider several portions of the Song of Solomon from three different angles: pre-marriage guidelines, marital principles, and spiritual truths pertaining to Christ and the church.

Nothing shall be able to separate us from divine love (Romans 8:35-39). As the church is secure in Christ, so the church must secure her love for Christ alone (Matthew 24:12; Revelation 2:4). We should let Him know in thought, word, and deed that we are His alone.

Considering the parameters I had, I was enamored with what I submitted. Well, that’s too strong. Maybe infatuated. No, not that either. Pleased, anyway.

So much for feelings. I received instructions to please rewrite the lesson.

(Oh, you’re wondering about the 907 in the post title? Well, 101 is so predictable, passé, and/or blasé.)

Today I started that process by reading through Song of Solomon. Alas, now I’m less optimistic than when I started. 😯

Do you have any passages to suggest (that fall within the above parameters)?

Relief Requires More Than Remorse

Repentance is a gift from the Redeemer.

Remorse does not equal repentance
nor is it an acceptable substitute.

Remorse which does not lead to repentance becomes its fatal substitute. Read it all

How Many Music Makers Can a House Hold?

I don't know about the typical household, but ours has several.

Night before last, as I looked for a certain old photo in one of our albums, I noticed this one:

“Hmmm… Big sister LaVay does this…”

Well, one thing has led to another for our youngest son Andy.

He composed the music for his sister Chayli’s poem.

I don’t know how he does it… Read it all

My Writer Daughter’s New Site

Michayla Roth launches This Extraordinary Life at michaylaroth.com

Our daughter Michayla launched her own web site.

Chayli Roth's site at michaylaroth.com

Here are the opening paragraphs of her first blog post on December 3:

Moments.

Life is made up of them. Some of them are exhilarating, others depressing. Quite a few of them are actually downright boring. There’s no way of knowing when one moment will end and when the next will begin or if a moment that began in joy will end in pain, and vice versa. But one thing is true about all of them: they are fleeting.

That’s part of the beauty of life. No moment lasts forever. They come and go, and though we cannot hold them, we know that more will follow, and who is to say that those will not be more lovely than the ones we cling to now? Through all the changeableness of life, through the moments we hold tightly and the ones we wish would end, there is one constant, and that is the One Who created us.

God’s goodness to His people never changes. His plan of redemption never changes. And His promise of life unending will never change either. Someday, if we cling tightly to His hand and follow Him through fire and bliss alike, we will find life that has no end. We will no longer see in moments but in eternity, and all that we called beautiful in this life will be as pale glass and fallen ash in comparison.

This life is just a dressing room for that one, and moment by moment, our chances to make this life something worthwhile are slipping away.

I don’t despise the moments of my life, but too often I treat them despicably.

As I commented on her blog… Read it all

Love: The Proof Is in the Pudding

That love you profess -- Is it curdled and barf-worthy?

Love puts its object first.

When you tell him, “I love you,” you’re saying you put him first.

When you declare your love for them, you’re committing yourself to keep putting them ahead of yourself.

Love puts aside selfish self-interests and self-centered self-absorption in order to do what is best for another.

Love puts a premium on the good of another…and without complaint or self-pity pays that premium.

Love puts its best into benefiting the other. Read it all

What Does Your Love Put?

They say the proof is in the pudding, but how do you pud?

Love
the proof is in the putting

Can you explain the meaning of that play on words? Read it all

Are You Getting Ripped Off at Outlet Stores?

Do you know the big secret in hiding them?

Clark Howard takes a swing at factory outlets: Read it all