The Journey

We are walking, you and I, friends

Enjoying amiable company

And I find we are heading for a desert

You take me to this place, a dry and barren land

I am drawn, though terrified, I do not want to go

You lure me in, I am powerless to say no

You take me there, and tenderly say that in this place there are times I will not see you, but you will always be there,

I will be broken, but you will heal, I will thirst, but you will refresh me

Then suddenly, I am alone, seemingly, in this God-forsaken place

I remember your words, but I feel panic because I do not see you, cannot feel you

I must only trust you are there

I become increasingly desperate for you; my throat is parched; I ache for your presence, for the way we were before this arrid land

I am breaking, I can take no more, my very life is draining from me, and then....

You are there, out of no where you appear, like an oasis in the middle of a vast desert

You refresh me with water, gently lift my limp body

Leaning on you, we leave this hard place and journey on to a new

I have learned a deep truth

You are not my only my friend, you are my source; not just a companion, but my lifeblood

The desert caused me to see that which I would never have known - I can never exist apart from you

Next I find you have led me to the most lush garden; it flourishes all around with fragrant flowers, gently rolling plains and babbling brooks

You make for me a plush bed among the grasses, the trees a canopy above me

I am hidden from all but you, for you have nestled me in to a secret place, where you will restore me, as you feed my soul the fruit of the vine

I rest, enveloped in your love, as you heal and renew me

The dew is like a healing balm to the wounds the desert inflicted

You whisper to me in the cool of the evening, and sing over me in the soft shadows of the night

I long to stay in this place forever

All to soon though, you are beckoning me to come

I resist, for I so love this place; I drink in deeply through all my senses all that is around me - the sights, smells, sounds of this, OUR place

I am strong, invigorated from our time here

I recall the hours spent communing, dancing, laughing - and I realize I am in love

Once again I gaze upon your face,

As I have so many times in our secret place

This time I see a new excitement, a passion burning in your eyes

You urge me to come, to run with you, no longer strolling together

Our walk has grown into a lover's hot pursuit

You are moving to yet a new place, and I, hopelessly in love, must chase after you

I cannot be apart from you, not for a moment

For we are lovers, every other pleasure pales in comparison to our divine romance

But our chase has led us to a final obstacle - there is before me a fire

You are on one side, I, the other

I reach out for you, but you say I must pass through

Do I trust you enough to walk through the flames?

You say it is the only way;

I will be consumed, yes, but not in a destructive way

For the inferno is a refiner's fire, and you the refiner

I step willingly into the flames; you have long ago proven your faithfulness; I choose to trust

The heat is sweltering, yet I am not harmed

Consumed, yet not burned, by the holy fire

As I emerge, I am shining, glowing, like the purest gold

I am clothed in vivid white, adorned in jewels, dressed as a bride approaching her groom

Your passionate desire has awakened my every sense as our love culminates in this wedded bliss

For we have arrived at our destination, the journey behind us and every joy set out before us for all eternity

I am wrapped in you and we are one, at last