When was the last time, if ever, you wore a crown?
I definitely remember wearing one as a child, and as a parent, playing make believe. I was sometimes the queen, sometimes a princess, but either way, I remember how that crown made me feel. There was this instant feeling of being someone special, someone important, and I felt like I could do most anything. The annoying part of wearing the crown sometimes was trying to keep it from falling off. If it didn’t fit perfectly around my head, it would slip off easily, preventing me from being able to do much with the crown on.
Today I read Psalm 103, and in verse 4 it says that God “crowns me with love and tender mercies.”
There are so many beautiful lines in this Psalm, but today that one really stuck with me. When that happens, I know God wants me to pay attention. So I dove deeper into those words, and here’s what I discovered:
The word love in this verse is originally the Hebrew word Hesed, which is actually difficult to translate in English. Theologian John Oswalt said it’s “a completely undeserved kindness and generosity.” It is a faithful, loyal kind of love, not just a feeling, but an action. Author Lois Tverberg said “it intervenes on behalf of loved ones and comes to their rescue.” In other words, it’s like the love that causes us to stay by the bedside of a sick loved one, or to stay up all night with our newborn babies, or to sit with a friend and just listen when they’re sad. It’s this kind of love, times an unfathomable amount more, that describes the unfailing love that God has for us.
This same word is used in Isaiah 54:10:
“Though the mountains be shaken and the hills removed, yet my unfailing love (hesed) for you will not be shaken.”
This is the kind of love that will not be removed from us, that we can’t lose. It’s always there. No matter how much tipping of our head we do, no matter where we go, the crown of God’s love stays put.
So, what might that mean for you today? How can this change or impact our day?
For me, it reminds me that I can talk to God about whatever’s on my heart and he will listen and love me through it. It means I can trust him to renew my spirit if I’m tired or down. I can trust him with those I love, who I miss when I’m not with them.
Yesterday and today that’s what I did. As always after a time with my kids, I hate the goodbyes. The days after I feel a little off, even though I’m so grateful for the time I had and also grateful for the things I have to come home to. I told God how I honestly felt, and then I read Psalm 103. I felt a comfort and peace that I know only could come from him.
So today I encourage you to give this a try. Sit in a quiet place, or go for a walk somewhere outside. You can pray your thoughts in your mind or you can write them in a journal. Then read Psalm 103. Think on the words you read. Then say or write what you hear him say to you.
Here’s a template to use if it’s helpful:
On the day I’m writing this, it’s Valentine’s Day. Some of you may feel really happy about that; some of you may not. However you feel about it, whether you receive a Valentine from anyone or not, know that you have a forever Valentine with God. He will never fail you or abandon you.
Today is also the day we celebrate Ash Wednesday, marking the beginning of Lent. Whether you attend a church and receive a cross of ashes on your forehead or not, you are a loved and chosen child of God.
"For you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God's very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of darkness into his wonderful light." 1 Peter 2:9-10
You are loved more deeply than you can imagine. God walks with you and longs for you to reach out to him, to trust him, to follow him. My prayer for myself and those I know and care about is that we always hear him, that we don’t let the world distract us from his voice, and that we remember to praise him through every season, every hill, and every valley.
Have a blessed day, with that lovely crown forever on your head.
