Monday, October 16, 2006

LET HIM BE LIKE THEE



Many years ago, a starry-eyed young woman longed to meet her knight in shining armor, the mate whom God had chosen for her. Her name was Ruth, and as she expressed the cry of her heart, she penned the words to a prayer-poem, “Let Him Be Like Thee":

“Dear God,” I prayed, all unafraid,
(As girls are apt to be,)
“I do not want a handsome man,
But let him be like Thee.

“I do not need one big and strong
Nor one so very tall
Nor need he be some genius
Or wealthy, Lord, at all.

“But let his head be high, dear God,
And let his eye be clear,
His shoulders straight, whate’er his state,
Whate’er his earthly sphere.

“And let his face have character
A ruggedness of soul
And let his whole life show, dear God,
A singleness of goal.

“And when he comes, as he will come
With quiet eyes aglow,
I’ll understand that he’s the man
I prayed for long ago.”

Oh, the earnestness that was in this young woman's heart! With childlike faith, she believed God would send "His" man into her life. Then Ruth went off to Bible college and met a handsome young preacher named Billy Graham, and they fell in love. Ruth was ecstatic. God had answered her prayer!

She penned these words to Billy:

"It was so very good of God
To let my dreams come true,
To note a young girl's cherished hopes,
Then lead her right to you;

So good of Him to take such care
In little, detailed parts
(He knows how much details mean
To young and wishful hearts);

So good of Him to let you be
Tall and slender, too,
With waving hair more blond than brown
And eyes of steel blue.

Soon, wedding bells rang for Ruth and Billy Graham in 1943, and now, this internationally-known couple has been married 63 years. Their love has been enduring, strong, and true. There have been tensions—as Ruth will readily attest—but there was tenderness too.

"My parents' love for one another was deeper than just the look in their eyes each time they came into the room," says their daughter Gigi Graham Tchividjian in Never Let It End…Poems of A Lifelong Love. "Their love was based on more than their physical and emotional attraction. It was based on solid, uncompromising commitment—first to Jesus Christ, second to the institution of marriage (Mother has teasingly said, 'Divorce never, murder maybe'), and then commitment to each other."

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Fast-forward decades. Another starry-eyed young woman longed to meet her knight in shining armor, the mate whom God had chosen for her. Her name was Kristy…

1 Comments:

At 3:32 PM, Anonymous Mrs H said...

So beautiful

 

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