The Product of My Eavesdropping

Today I overheard a conversation. As I was sitting and reading my book I notice two men talking together. One of them was an old man. He was greyed and weathered. His body was bent and his eyes were wrinkly, though in an endearing way. The other man was very young. He was fit and youth radiated off of him. His hair was dark and full, his eyes bright and awake. 

But I began to notice a difference in the two men. Despite the many years the old man had on the younger man, he had this assurance about him. He spoke with confidence and authority. He spoke with the voice of a man who has been touched by God. The younger man slouched in his seat, his eyes, though bright and aware, held sadness and desperation. He was visibly lost. I began to listen to the conversation of these two men, curious at their unusual differences. 

Through the course of my eavesdropping, I discovered that the younger man had come to the older, seeking counsel. The younger man's wife has been unhappy for some time. The young man was desperate to find some answers and had come to the older man for just that. After hearing the story the older man began to speak. I was amazed at what he revealed to the young man... 

The old man said "your wife has been unhappy. There is something her heart desires that you have not given her. By the grace of god she has been patient with you and loved you through it. But you have a responsibility to her as her husband. God has promised us an eternity. In the course of that eternity, he wishes for us that we join together in friendship, love, and communion. Your wife's heart longs for a way to express the most important love she can show to you: the love of Christ. Because of your own sins and doubts, you have closed off that most important communication between the two of you. You have denied her the ability to serve her purpose and act as a mirror of gods love to you. When you begin to connect with God and open up that part of your life to her, you will be able to make her happy again. And you will be filled with overwhelming joy for you are also fulfilling God's purpose for your life. He made you to love, and if he made you to love her, then this is what you must do" 

I was so amazed at this conversation. It opened my eyes to something I had never been able to see in that way. It gave me a desire to be the kind of woman that would require a man to seek out Christ to be able to fill my heart. It made me appreciate what kind of love could be gained from God's plan and what kind of love could be gained from me seeking out the love of my life in that way as well. To see a God that provides that depth of love for his precious daughters and treasured sons makes my heart flood with joy. God wants us to experience first hand the desperation Jesus has for us in our relationships with the people we fall in love with.  I know now what I hope to find in a marriage.  First and foremost.  When Jesus is the first priority in falling in love, then all the rest will fall into place.  

I do not know what will become of these two men or how they knew each other. But I was inspired to see a young man learning to seek out his wife with all the desperation that Christ seeks for us.   Even more I was overjoyed to see an old man that has learned this valuable lesson through the course of his life and was willing to share it with others.  While I do not encourage eavesdropping, God blessed me today through my curiosity.