The word “engage” stems from the French word “engager,” meaning to bind. And “engagement” in the context of marriage refers to a formal promise or pledge to marry. Keith announced our engagement at his retirement from the government in 2003 and gave me a stunning engagement ring six months later. Betrothal ended with our marriage before God in 2006.

As you can see, we were very attracted to one another, and still are. And God knows that’s another meaning of the word “engage.”

Engage: to attract

For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. Isaiah 55:10-11 KJV

Here, Isaiah offers a poetic vision of restoration, declaring God’s power to transform the world. Although addressed to exiled Judeans in the sixth century BCE, these words speak to us today. The abundance noted in verse 10 engages our senses: the cool dampness of rain, the green landscape, the taste of bread. God’s word is life-giving.

But, if we engage ourselves solely with heavenly visions, we might end up being no earthly good.

Engage: to participate in

“Listening,” my word for 2024, is a skill I have to practice every day, to engage others.

Studies show we live longer and better when we engage with family, friends, and neighbors, anyone with whom we come into contact. But to find our purpose in these engagements, we have to discover the qualities, talents, personality traits that define us. We cannot choose our gifts, but we can choose how to put those we’ve been given to good use. 

My gifts? Generosity, service, leadership. To use those gifts, I must step out of myself and become involved.

Engage: to become involved

Self-involvement versus engaging with others—the latter is how we put God’s life-giving word into action. For some, like Phil Connors, the protagonist in the movie Groundhog Day, it takes a mind shift, a turning around. 

Phil Connors is a self-absorbed Prima Dona who thinks he controls the weather. Until a blizzard strands him in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania on Groundhog Day, a day that repeats over and over and over. There’s no exit for Phil, no satisfaction for his anger or sins of greed, gluttony or manipulation of power, his vacillation between self-love and self-hate. Perhaps all of us, if we’re honest, can see Phil’s struggles in ourselves. Eventually, he gives up his self-indulgence and decides to engage with and help others.

Isaiah’s vision of restoration. Listen and use your gifts. Engage.

In faith and marriage, bind with, attract, participate in, become involved with God and others.

Linkup with Five Minute Friday: https://fiveminutefriday.com/2025/03/20/fmf-writing-prompt-link-up-engage-guest-post-by-annette/