Title:- Kisses & Whispers
Romans 16:16 "Greet one another with a holy kiss..."
Love song lyrics can be both banal and cringe-worthy! Yet an examination of cultural musical trends can give us indications of social anxieties, structure and even some prevailing problems. I suppose ‘Gangsta rap’ being one example in the U.S. and ‘Punk’ another example in the U.K. These two genres of music can be viewed as dangerous, anarchistic and violent, whilst the only damage a simple love song lyric can do is maybe mislead some silly women and sad men into stupid affairs. Yes, musical genres do say something and unfortunately, even if be it ever so nice, all cultural expression rooted primarily in a fallen world, always carries with it a duplicitous danger and seduction to sinfulness that we would do well to be aware of.
Yet friends, we must also be aware that singing rises from the soul, even from the depths of our being and so may bring to the surface some of the lost jewels of our deepest desire, even some of the hidden things of God? For if eternity is indeed laid up in our hearts, then as we open our souls, maybe some of the bright sands of that lost shore will sparkle sometimes in the words we sing and in even the way we sing them? So then, to my fascination with ‘love songs,’ for my observed premise is that everything that is true of love as expressed in various songs, everything, is in the end talking about Jesus, who is, love incarnate!
It seems to me then, that two noticed and ever present themes in successful love songs, keywords if you will, are ‘kissing’ and ‘whispers’.
First, I want to suggest that the kisses and whispers of love songs are in fact, reflections of some deep spiritual issues, for whilst kissing is the sign of deepest intimacy, of connectivity and Holy knowing, whispers are the private caressing of the kind and delicately used keys of unlocking words to a person’s most innermost being. Maybe even here then, in seemingly banal loves songs, lies some of the secret evangelism of God?
For example, ‘Lonestar’, in their song ‘Softly’ (Annie Roboff/Holly Lamar) sing:
Baby, with the sweetest kissYou came along and stole my breath
Tore down my defences with a whisper
Oh you showed me how love can be
You broke through to my heart
Softly, baby softly
In my long examining of love song lyrics it is obvious that our chief and deep desire, is to be embraced and held close. I would suggest this desire is a metaphysical echo of the deepest need of ours to be embraced intimately by God, to be held softly by Him. This is at least one answer to the unusual scenes surrounding the Hindu Guru, ‘Mata Amritanandamayi Devi’ (mother of absolute bliss), who at the beginning of the 21st century is reported to have divinely ‘hugged’ over 30 million people in the prior 30 years? Imagine that! People do need embracing you see. That shake of a hand on Sunday morning, that moment of manly hugging, is for many sometimes the only intimate human contact people will get all week. Think about that. Embracing one another is very important for the soul.
Second then, love song lyrics indicate that our own soul’s longing is to hear unlocking whispers, and in particular I would say, His unlocking words, even His whispers to our own lost and hurting hearts. Is this why so many desperate Christians run to every prophet, approved or other wise, every seemingly wise whacko even, with the hope of hearing but one word directed especially to them, just for them, from Him, just once? People are longing for a personal whisper from the Lord. Aren’t you?
Friends, let us the church, at least learn to embrace one another in Holy intimacy and godly gentleness and then to speak to one another from the depths of who we are to the depths of who they are, with tender and touching tenderness. I wonder if then and only then, we shall begin to truly be the body of Christ engaged in singing His eternal love song over one another? Those who have ears to hear, let them hear and those who have arms to hold, let them embrace!
Listen:- … and after the earthquake a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice. So it was, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood in the entrance of the cave. Suddenly a voice came to him, and said, ……1 Kings 19:12b-13a
"Do not fear; Zion, let not your hands be weak. The LORD your God in your midst, The Mighty One, will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing." Zephaniah 3:16-17 NKJV
Pray: - My God, my Father of absolute bliss, embrace me today. Do not leave me without a whisper from Your mouth, for as the deer pants for the water brooks, so pants my soul for You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. Kiss me with the kisses of your mouth for your love is sweeter than wine. Come close dear Saviour, come close. Amen.
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