She is beautiful...

It’s a funny thing…to be in love.

The love I have for Jesus is unexplainable…beyond.

With Ashleigh it’s much simpler, almost child-like in comparison, but real nonetheless. It’s such a HUGE responsibility taking care of another persons heart. An impossible responsibility. People hand their hearts over without thinking, which requires no courage, no depth, no sincerity. It’s handed over blindly…foolishly.

People hand it over like they were sharing candy or playing frisbee, simply living in the moment. But our hearts aren’t a toy. They aren’t meant to be played with or shared with just anyone.

They are like a garden.

It takes hard work and care and time to nurture it and grow it until it produces beautiful flowers and fruit.

When we let just anyone try to take care of our garden, we are left barren, unwatered, trampled on…Because they are blind and they are children, unable to see the measure of destruction they are causing. They either blindly fumble around, trying their best to maintain the richness of the garden, or they are children, running and playing and stomping on and destroying its beauty because they simply don’t know any better.

I have realized one very important truth, which was spoken to me before, but I never absorbed it truly. A truth I learned since Ashleigh has allowed me the gift of being able to nurture her garden (heart).

I have learned that I am entirely unable to do so. I can NOT take care of it. I have toiled in vain, trying my best to create a beautiful place, but it was never mine to take care of in the first place. I have only caused more damage…

I was never meant, made or created to take care of it.

You see..God gave Earth to mankind, so that he may take care of it, but as for the human heart, or in my case, the heart of a woman, He never intended man to take care of that. It was His garden to sustain and His alone.

Because only He can make the soil rich.

Only He can pour Living Water on dry ground.

Only He can plant good Seed.

Only He can move the sun overhead.

I have learned that we are indeed created in the image of God. We are gardeners, and Earth is our garden. He is also a Gardener and His garden is our hearts.

Beautiful.

Being with Ash has taught me that I must stop trying to tend the gardens of people, because that is a garden only Jesus can truly sustain and enhance. And when I try, I find I am unable to do well.

Being with Ash has taught me that humans must stop allowing people into their garden, only to be crushed underfoot, and let Jesus in to do damage control.

Being with Ash has taught me that my surroundings are my responsibility to tend to and take care of. This is the place I am supposed to water and the land I am supposed to work. And the heart of man is a garden that can only be taken care of by God.

So…

I gave Ashleigh back her heart because to hold onto it and try to take care of that garden woudn’t be true love, it would be arrogant, selfish and even a form of hatred. She also gave me my heart back..

Though this process was difficult, she finally understood and gave her heart to Jesus. Jesus is the Gardener that now tends her heart and continues to undo the damage that has been done to it. Jesus is also now the gardener of my heart.

Beautiful.

But here is the key to true love…the main point I want to make. If you hope to experience the greatest love this side of heaven, which I have JUST figured out, it is this…

When Ash and I gave our hearts to Jesus instead of each other, then Jesus cleaned up the the mess, planted new seed, grew a jaw-dropping/eye-popping/edge-of-your-seat stunningly beautiful garden and then…

He promised us that when our covenant (marriage) is sealed, He will invite me into her garden to enjoy fully, humbly and purely and do the same for her with my garden!

And that my friends…is true love

Beautiful.