In 1826,
the British author Thomas Carlyle married Jane Welsh, who also was an
accomplished writer. She dedicated herself to his success and served him
wholeheartedly.
Because
of a stomach ailment and a nervous disorder, he had a rather ornery
temperament. So she made special meals for him and tried to keep the house as
quiet as possible so he could do his writing.
Thomas
didn’t often recognize Jane’s helpful spirit nor did he spend much time with
her. However, he wrote this about her to his mother: “I may say in my heart
that she . . . loves me with a devotedness which is a mystery to me how I have
ever deserved. She . . . looks with such soft cheerfulness into my gloomy
countenance, that new hope passed into me every time I met her eye.”
We too
have Someone who loves us with a devotedness that is a mystery how we as
sinners ever deserved it! He is God the Father, “who did not spare His own Son,
but delivered Him up for us all” (Rom. 8:32).
His love is wide, long, deep, and high and exceeds our knowledge (Eph. 3:18-19).
Understanding and appreciating God’s love is so vital that Paul prayed for the Ephesians to be “rooted and grounded” in it (v.17). May that be our experience as well.
