A Letter to Me

 

I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that I have often intended to come to you (but thus far have been prevented), in order that I may reap some harvest among you as well as among the rest of the Gentiles. I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish. (Romans 1:13-14 ESV).

 

Every once in a while I return to a small keepsake collection and read this little booklet Mary wrote to me shortly before we were married, over fifty years ago. Obviously you can tell it is unique. She handcrafted the cover and printed the words on each page. The first few pages are a copy of Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s poem, How Do I Love Thee (Sonnet 43). I know it is difficult to read the lines on the printed pages in this picture, but they are personal and directed to me. The booklet was a “Letter to Me.” Here’s the text:

 

“There are many more verses from songs or poetry I could quote but there are times when the best way to express one’s feelings for another is thru his own words and not those borrowed from the mouth or pen of a distant stranger.”

 

“Donnie, to simply say that I love you is very small indeed because there are no words to express my deepest feelings for you. Also, the word ‘love’ carries with it various connotations and must be clearly defined. For I do not love you just as another human being, nor as my mother or father. For that is brotherly love and certainly you are no brother to me. But neither do I love you as a young girl experiencing her first ‘puppy’ love… for I possess a much deeper, more lasting love. To me you are my breath, life and very being. But, still I must say “I love you” and trust that you will derive the correct meaning from it.”

 

That was the beginning of our journey. I am grateful that it has been long and full of love and joy. She has been and continues to be the mainstay in my life. However, there is another in our lives. That other point in the triangle of relationship is the Lord. Our reading today underscores that love He has for each of us and how he has expressed it. I know this because of the very personal letter He has written to me. The Bible wasn’t written for people who couldn’t care less; it isn’t written just for the people who can read Hebrew or Greek; and, it isn’t written for nonbelievers.

 

This booklet Mary wrote clearly isn’t written for anyone else. It is written for me. The Apostle Paul’s letter is for “Greeks and non-Greeks, wise and foolish” (v. 14). It’s his way of saying this expression of God’s love is for all who believe, regardless of their heritage or level of understanding. Somewhere in that mix I too am included. God’s “letter” is for me too. It is for me because God loves me and calls me to belong to him in Jesus. Watch… if I lean toward the foolish end, God’s Word is for me. If I am already wise and seasoned, God’s Word is for me. God is not interested in simply teaching me theology. God wants me to know him and hear him and love him. That’s the whole point of the gospel. And that is why God’s letter through Paul to the Romans is for me… and you. We merely need to read it.