Wednesday, October 22, 2003
Life is a fragile thing. In a real sense mine can be said to have arisen from a feat of eisegesis.
My grandparents on my mother's side were both missionaries in Nigeria in the 1950s. They both went over single. My grandma was a sworn spinster. She had her life verse, and it was Isaiah 54:5a:—
For your Maker is your husband...Consequently, she determined never to marry. My grandfather, on the other hand, after arriving in Nigeria, read a book on raising a Christian family. He was struck by this book and was convinced that he should raise a godly family. The only problem was finding a wife. This was far from easy out on the mission-field, his options were narrow. He had three criteria for the one he was to marry, only two of which I know. The first was that she would be happy without an engagement ring. The second was that she should be the same age. My grandparents met at a meal over which the conversation came to the subject of marriage. My grandma said that she would never consider having an engagement ring were she to marry. My grandfather took a mental note, and later asked her about the possibility of marriage. My grandma dismissed the notion. Her verse was Isaiah 54:5a and she saw no reason to change it. That evening she returned home and opened her Bible. The first verse her eyes came upon was John 15:12:—
This is My commandment, that you love one another...They married shortly afterwards. Two of their children went on to be missionaries. Both of my godly grandparents have since died. However, whenever I think about such stories it gives me pause to wonder at the marvellous providences of God upon which our existence hangs!
