“Who is this coming up from the wilderness
Like pillars of smoke,
Perfumed with myrrh and frankincense,
With all scented powders of the merchant?”
— Song of Songs 3:6
Here in the experience of the third stage, we begin to realize that the Lord is a Merchant. We can no longer expect that things will come cheaply. The Lord makes it clear that if you pay Him five cents, He will give you something worth five cents, and if you pay Him 100 dollars, He will give you something worth 100 dollars. If you give Him one year, He will give you something worth one year in return; if you give Him ten years, He will give you something worth ten years in return. How much blessing He gives you depends on the price you are willing to pay.
Our relationship with the Lord is no longer one in which He draws us, and then we pursue Him, or in which He freely supplies us, and thus we enjoy Him. Now the Lord demands, “Can you pay the price? Can I touch you in your living?” Although you will suffer the exacting of a price, your payment of the price will result in your being perfumed with myrrh.
Adapted from The Journey of Life, page 212.
Tomorrow: “Perfumed by the Merchant” (2)