The Flirt

Promise me, O women of Jerusalem, by the gazelles and wild deer, not to awaken love until the time is right. – Song of Songs 2:7

It says three times in the Song of Solomon not to “awaken” love until the right time (2:7, 3:5, 8:4). And did you catch this part? Solomon says it to the women.

That’s no coincidence. Women seem to know instinctively how to get a guy’s attention. We know just how to walk, talk, and bat our eyelashes. In short, we know how to flirt. But we don’t always know when to draw the line.

Flirting is fun. We all crave attention, and flirting seems like a harmless way to get it. It lets a person know you’re interested. But have you noticed how easy it is to go too fast? I know I’ve been in relationships that seem to go from zero to sixty in the matter of a few dates or weeks (whichever comes first).

We all need reminders, like this one in Song of Songs. Be careful not to let your flirting go too far, or before you know it you may have committed yourself farther than you’re willing to go. Without meaning to, you might convince a guy that you’re far more interested than you really are, setting him up for heartbreak and setting yourself up for a potentially dangerous – or at least a very awkward – situation. When you’re flirting, remember that you may be holding another person’s heart in your hands!

Prayer: Thank you for the incredible gift of communication, that we can use our voices and bodies to attract others. Help me to keep appropriate boundaries at home, school, or in the workplace and not awaken love until the time is right. Amen.