Gary Henry – Reaching Forward – June 20, 200

“Many daughters have done well, But you excel them all.”

Proverbs 31:29

As a child, I remember hearing old men pray, “Lord, suit unto us such bless-ings as you see fit.” Even then, I think I was struck by the joyful blend of humility and gratitude that would prompt such a prayer. Left to our own devices, we may think we want this or that, but what we really want is what-ever the Lord wants for us. And we don’t just “settle” for how the Lord wants to bless us – we receive it openly, receptively, and joyously.

This truth is in the story of Eowyn and Faramir in the legends of J.R.R. Tolkien. Eowyn, a princess of Rohan whose heroism on the Pelennor Fields had turned back the tide of evil, would have loved, and been loved by Aragorn, heir to the throne of Gondor, but it was impossible for Aragoen to be Eowyn’s husband. The prince, Faramir, however, who would later rule the land if Ithiliedn, came to love Eowyn as they both recuperated from battle in the Houses of Healing. “Eowyn, do you not love me,” he said after court-ing her, “or will you not?” there is not a greater moment in all of literature than when Eowyn decided that … yes, she would.

I am no Aragorn, the Lord knows. But once upon a time, my path ran alongside that of a true Eowyn, a shieldmaded of the Lord, both valiant and virtuous. Many were the long nights when I praued for her a Faramir – and when in the Lord’s grace he appeared, her virtue was such that she opened her heart to receive his love. “Behold the maidservant of the Lord,” her willing spirit said. “Let it be to me according to your word” (Luke 1:38). And now, we can only imagine how many lives will have been blessed by the love of Eowyn and Farmir by the time our Lord returns.

O Eowyn, Eowyn. “I thank my God upon every remembrance of you … being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:3, 6). I do not say fare well – for on this life’s voyage there will surely be storms – but I pray you’ll fare forward.