Romance Novel Love

Marriage will either drive you crazy, or to Christ. Anonymous

Like most women, I'm a sucker for romance.

I love Valentine's Day, flowers, jewelry, and dinners on the town. I like to read novels by Francine Rivers and Jan Karon, and I even sneak a peek at the final episodes of dating shows like "The Bachelor," hoping unrealistically that someone might just find lasting love with a camera stuck in their face.

In fact, when I was eleven years old, I voraciously read every book in a series of teen romances. And as a budding author, I naively thought, "I could write one of these!"

I ended up writing two. The title of my titillating novels? Magical Daydreams and Someday, Somewhere (gag!). I had no luck getting them published--not enough life experience with the subject matter, I suppose.

But I still held out hope that I would have my own romance someday, and I prayed for a Prince Charming. Imagine my surprise when that answered prayer and I had our first fight in the car, driving away from our dream wedding! He wanted to stop and clean the car of its "Just Married" debris--from top to bottom. I was ready to hose it down quickly and get to our destination, which was still an hour's drive away. Our second fight, which took place a week later in our newlywed apartment, was about how to organize the refrigerator. Can you say "obsessive-compulsive?"

Come to think of it, most of our fusses have been about preferences over cleanliness and order—which I'm thankful for. We share similar values, backgrounds, and passions, so we don't fight a lot. And he's, quite simply, a wonderful husband.

But my idea of "wedded bliss" was not being in tears on the way to our Honeymoon Suite.

Maybe you've had a similar wake-up call. Marriage tends to give us those, doesn't it? No matter how much our husband loves us—or we love him--he's never going to be "enough" to satisfy our little-girl longings for a knight in shining armor.

That's why I love two books God placed in my path over the last few years: The Sacred Romance by John Eldredge and Brent Curtis and The Allure of Hope by Jan Meyers. Instead of giving "quick-fix" answers to a woman's heartaches and questions ("Is this all there is?" and "Why do I want more all the time?"), they maintain that our longing for beauty and perfection isn't wrong—just misplaced.

Meyers writes, "Living with childlike faith brings the subtle ache that does not go away. The groaning comes from unlimited vision of what could be . . . [and] hope is something that rises up inside of us with a gentle strength that requires a response. We either respond to it with our hearts or we try to push it down."


In other words, we can shut down our longings (which might be more comfortable in the beginning), or we can go to God with them, and let Him show us what we're truly wanting.

You know what I've found? He is the only perfect Bridegroom, and—amazing as this is—He calls me his "Beloved." "He has taken me to the banquet hall, and his banner over me is love." (Song of Solomon 2:4)

How's that for romantic?

Are you looking for love and acceptance today? There is someone who loves you so much that He gave His most prized possession for you. The Bible tells us that God has loved us “with an everlasting love” (Jeremiah 31:3). God doesn’t love us because we love Him, He loved us first. If you would like to know this kind of love today, you can.

Living with hope

No one can be perfect, or have a perfect life. But every one of us has the opportunity to experience perfect grace through a personal relationship with God through His Son, Jesus Christ.

You can receive Christ right now by faith through prayer. Praying is simply talking to God. God knows your heart and is not so concerned with your words as He is with the attitude of your heart. Here's a suggested prayer:

Lord Jesus, I want to know you personally. Thank you for dying on the cross for my sins. I open the door of my life to you and ask you to come in as my Savior and Lord. Take control of my life. Thank you for forgiving my sins and giving me eternal life. Make me the kind of person you want me to be.

Does this prayer express the desire of your heart? You can pray it right now, and Jesus Christ will come into your life, just as He promised.

Is this the life for you?

If you invited Christ into your life, thank God often that He is in your life, that He will never leave you and that you have eternal life. As you learn more about your relationship with God, and how much He loves you, you'll experience life to the fullest.

"He has taken me to the banquet hall, and his banner over me is love." Song of Solomon 2:4, NIV


Are truth and love in the stars?
Gorging on chocolate love

~Dena Dyer is a professional author with credits in hundreds of magazines and several anthologies. She is also a speaker and author, and has two precious boys and a wonderful husband. The Dyers live in Texas . Dana's book Grace for the Race: Meditations for Busy Moms is available on her site www.denadyer.com