Fast forward a few years.  Married now. 3 kids.  Stinky diapers.  Dishes piled high. Crumbs multiplying rapidly under the table.  Dirty laundry overflowing the hamper.  Toys everywhere.  No money.  Bills and more bills.  Exhaustion beyond comprehension.  Instead of greeting him with hugs and kisses, it was stringy hair, still in my pyjamas and "here take this kid"......... Loving words quickly turned into nagging.  What happened?

Of course we still loved each other.  But the drudgery of the daily grind, and the dust of life had all but covered up the sparkles and tingles of our love.  To get back the freshness and joy of our love we must work very hard to dust off the cares of the world and every day living.  We make a point of making our bedroom a haven for just us.  We do not allow it to become cluttered up with piles of laundry or work.  We are careful to carve out times to get away from house and children and just be together.  We don't want to become lost in the drudgery of life until that spark within us is buried beneath the cares of life and lost forever. Our love is now stronger than when we first fell in love, but it is important that we keep it fresh.  No matter how long you've been married there is still a need for sparkles and romance.

Are we ever like this with God?  When we first got saved we were so in love with Jesus.  We couldn't wait to go to church, to pray, to worship, to spend time with Him, telling Him that we love Him, talking to Him.  But if we aren't careful, the cares of life can quickly choke out our desire and love for the Lord, and we find ourselves making excuses to skip church, or we realize during the weekly dusting that our precious BIBLE, the very Word of God, is dusty!!!!!!!!! We need to be diligent not to allow the burdens of life to get in the way of our relationship with the Lover of our Souls.  Let us be careful that we never lose that first love with God.