Just Stop and Think

This article by Ellyn P. originally appeared in the February 2010 issue. I wanted to repost it as some of you are going to college soon and, even if you’re not, it’s still encouraging.

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“I want to hear the thunder of who You are
To be captured inside the wonder of who You are
I want to live I want to breathe
To search out Your heart and all of Your mysteries

Your glory burns in the stars
Shine down Your light let me know who You are
Jesus, Your glory burns in the stars
Shine down Your light, let me see You, let me see You.”
-Phil Wickham

I thought I had my life figured out. I came into college thinking I had it all together and that I would be fine but soon enough I realized what a mess I was. I hated college, hated America and didn’t fit in. I felt so different from everyone else and no one understood me. I saw everyone making friends, laughing, having fun and enjoying life. I on the other hand was lonely, dissatisfied, and desperate. Desperate for something greater. I had this longing in my heart that I couldn’t explain to anyone. I felt so incomplete and I knew I was missing something.

One night I was having a quiet time in the cafeteria (to be honest the first one in a while) and while I was sitting there by myself I couldn’t help but feel alone. Looking around at everyone so happy made me feel even worse. All of a sudden I heard God’s quiet voice saying to me, “You are not alone, you may feel like you have no-one but I am here. I’ve been here the whole time. This is your time to get close to me, to understand who I really am and to capture the crazy love that I have for you. I alone can satisfy your deepest longing and can offer you more than any human being on this earth. Until you truly love me with all your heart, you will continue to search for fulfillment.”

I am reading this book called “Crazy Love” and I firmly believe that God gave me this book at this time in my life for a reason. It talks about God’s crazy and unchanging love for us.

God wants a relationship with us. It’s not about joining some cult it’s about talking to our Creator and having a relationship with Him. God says we become His bride. It’s a picture of intimacy, love and relationship that’s greater than any relationship we can experience as human beings, it’s intimacy with our Creator. It’s almost as though the God of the universe is proposing to us saying, “Look, I love you, I want to forgive you, I want to spend eternity with you and forgive you as far as the east is from the west, we will put it behind us and start this new relationship together.” God is begging us to surrender all that we have unto Him and trust Him fully. He is on one knee giving us this ring saying, “Will you take me? Will you enter into this relationship with me, Almighty God?” All we have to do is say, “I do.” Get on your knees or get alone and say to God, “I love you, I know i’ve messed up but now i know Your Son paid for this and I want to spend eternity with You, I want to follow You.” But don’t just say it, look at your life, is it showing in your life? If we really love God then we will follow His commands. It is the idea of trust and saying we trust Him because He has done everything for our good, He has given us life, forgiveness, and His commands that are going to be for our good and that will show through our lifestyle. This is God’s love letter to us. Jesus alone can satisfy the longing of our hearts. The God of the universe is crazy about you and screaming out for your attention, so don’t just walk away and go back to your routine, this could be the greatest day of your life.

Just stop and think.

And that is exactly what I have been learning. To just stop and think about the beauty of God and His love for me, for you. God wants us to come running into His arms fully devoted and committed to Him. Are we willing to trust Him? I have had to ask myself this question over and over again since I have been in college. There are so many things I want answers to right now and so many things I want figured out but I now know that God isn’t ready for me to hear it. It’s about patiently waiting on our Creator and knowing that His timing is perfect.

Although I have felt alone and abandoned I also feel the love of God surrounding me. I have never felt this close to God in my entire life and it is changing my entire perspective of life and the way I choose to live. I realized I was just going through the motions of life and I viewed God as this book on the bookshelf that I would only go to when I really needed it. Now I know that it’s all about relationship with the One who created us in His perfect image. It is about waking up every morning and making the decision to follow God and to letting Him guide your day. It is about taking time to be with your Jesus.
Jesus is a person so knowing Him has to be personal. Do I really know Him? Do I passionately pursue relationship with Him? I have to ask myself these questions daily.

There is one thing I know, the best thing in life is knowing Christ. He has changed my life and I hope this note encourages you and reminds you of God’s crazy love that He has for us. I challenge you to take time out of each day, and thank God for giving you life and asking Him to guide you through your day to day life. I promise you won’t regret it. God is crying out for us to be His bride. All we have to say is, “I do.”

Just stop and think.