Devotionals by Dr. M. Craig Barnes

How beautiful you are, my love. . . your hair is like a flock of goats, moving down the slopes of Gilead. -- Song of Solomon 4:1

Maybe you have to be an ancient goat herder to appreciate this verse. In its day, it really made the women swoon. Clearly Solomon found it effective, because it was with lines like this that he collected hundreds of wives and concubines. But that was back when all the cool women were trying to get their hair to look just like a flock of goats. If you're in a romantic relationship today, I wouldn't recommend trying these words. And yet, they are still the Word of God for us.

Why was the Song of Solomon included in Holy Scripture? Because it reveals the delight God takes in human passion. Your ability to be passionately in love is part of God's good creation in your life, so don't ask God to take away your desire. These days you may prefer Shakespeare or contemporary love songs to the Song of Solomon, but you have to express passion to be fully alive.

Biblical spirituality has such an earthy quality. It has nothing to do with escaping human emotions, and everything to do with learning how to enjoy them. Like all of God's gifts in your lives, passion has to be disciplined to be enjoyed. Other parts of the Bible speak clearly to that, and indicate that if your desire is not disciplined it will consume you. Solomon probably isn't the best illustration of this, but limiting your sexuality and enjoying it are actually the same thing.

-- Craig Barnes