Are You Leaning?
by Jilly Lyon-Taylor
Today’s verse is one that I have been thinking a lot about recently and trying to put into practice. It comes from the Song of Solomon, also known as the Song of Songs, or, perhaps more correctly, the Song of Songs which is Solomon’s. It is a love story, describing the passion between two people, presumably Solomon and his beloved. But it also contains wonderful truths that we can learn from as we consider our relationship with Jesus Christ. One of these is contained in this short verse about leaning on our Beloved.
To lean on something or someone, you need to have complete trust that you will be upheld. You wouldn’t lean on a table that had a broken leg, or against a fence that was rotten, because these might collapse. To lean on a person, you would need to know that they were utterly trustworthy and able to uphold you. The Lord is both. He is completely faithful and has promised never to leave us or forsake us (Hebrews 13:5b); and in Isaiah 41:10 He says: “I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”
When in a loving relationship, leaning on your beloved brings a very special place of intimacy. There is often no need for words, because just that act of leaning can bring a closeness that has no need of other expression. That gives us a beautiful picture of what it is like to be intimate with the Lord, leaning on Him, trusting Him and enjoying a closeness with Him that transcends words.
It is interesting that this verse talks about the person who is leaning on her lover coming up from the wilderness. If we find ourselves in a spiritual wilderness, perhaps the answer is to consciously lean afresh on our Beloved and trust Him to lead us up and out of the desert. We can lean on Him for everything we need – provision, strength, enabling, healing, as well as the peace and joy that comes from intimacy with Him. Are you leaning on Him today?
Jilly Lyon-Taylor is part of the Leadership Team at Ellel Pierrepont. She worked in publishing and then with children in Hong Kong before concentrating on being a full-time mother and serving in the local church. Her desire to see people healed led her to the Luke Nine Eleven Training Scheme(NETS) at Pierrepont, and now she teaches and ministers there.
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