“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful.”
—Colossians 3:15

Reflection

In the Song of Songs, we find a young woman who has endured rejection and mistreatment while searching for her beloved. Yet when the daughters of Jerusalem, a group of women in the poem, question what makes him so special, she does something astonishing. Rather than becoming bitter, she begins praising his beauty and glory.

Their relationship gives us a spiritual picture of our relationship with Messiah Yeshua.

The woman declares that her beloved’s head is like pure gold. Gold speaks of His divine nature, and the head speaks of leadership. Ephesians 1:22–23 tells us that the Father gave Jesus as head over all things to the church, which is His body.

As members of the body of Messiah, you and I are connected to Jesus, our head, and His leadership is royal and perfect, like gold.

Furthermore, you and I have heads! Our heads, meaning our minds, are likewise supposed to be like gold. We are created to have the mind of Christ.

This is why I like to pray: Lord Jesus, make my thoughts Your thoughts. Cleanse my mind and rewire the way I think so that my head becomes like Your head. I don’t want to have natural opinions and think in a natural way. I want to see as You see. Administer Your way of thinking, Your divine life, into my head. Your thoughts, plans, and ways are like pure gold!

The young woman continues describing her beloved’s eyes as being beside streams of water, reflecting His peace and settled confidence.

Have you ever looked into somebody’s eyes and seen depths of love, like deep pools of water? That is how she describes her beloved’s eyes.

She also describes his cheeks as beds of balsam and banks of sweet-scented herbs (Song of Songs 5:13).

In this spiritual picture, cheeks represent emotions. His cheeks are not tense but full of sweetness. His face is free of stress.

I like to reflect on passages like this as a way to guide my own emotions. We see in her poetic description who God is emotionally. When we compare our own emotions to His, it helps us rein in and redirect our feelings and bring them into agreement with God’s.

For example, if I am needlessly sad, I begin to declare that the Lord is joy, and because He lives inside me, I can activate my will and enter into that joy. Scripture tells us, “Rejoice in the Lord always” (Philippians 4:4).

Sometimes I find myself needlessly elevating my stress levels. Then I think, Is God stressed? No, He is relaxed. So I slow down, pull my energy back, and release the stress and pride that are producing anxiety in me.

Beloved, the best way for us to honor His emotions is to bring ours into alignment with His.

Application

• Ask Yeshua to cleanse your mind and rewire the way you think so that your thoughts become more like His.
• When stress, sadness, or anxiety begins to rise, consider God’s peace and joy. Choose to bring your emotions into agreement with His.

Prayer

Lord Jesus, make my thoughts Your thoughts and teach me to see as You see. Cleanse my mind and administer Your divine life into the way I think. When I become stressed or anxious, help me slow down and release the things that are troubling my heart. Teach me to enter into Your joy and bring my emotions into alignment with Yours. Let Your peace, love, and settled confidence be reflected in my life. In Yeshua’s name, amen.