My Forever Love

"To fall in love with God is the greatest of romances, to seek Him the greatest adventure, to find Him the greatest human achievement." (St. Augustine)

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I used to think the concept of falling in love with God was kind of weird and didn't really make a whole lot of sense to me. How can I fall in love with God... he's my God, not my boyfriend. But now nothing could make more sense and be so beautiful to me.

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Yeah, I was one of those girls growing up who read the little 'girlz' devotional books that said, 'Your worth is not determined by if a guy likes you or not... you're worth is in Jesus.' Of course, reading this now it would make a ton more sense to me, but then I was just like, 'whatever... that's stupid... of course if a guy likes me it's gonna make me feel a ton better about myself.' It wasn't until my junior year of high school that I became more confident in the person that I was as an individual. I began to see myself for who I was and discover my talents and learn how to use them for the glory of God. But the truth is, I still struggle with this. I still struggle knowing who I am and being confident in the woman God created me to be. I have so many insecurities. I have so many doubts. I want to feel special or loved by someone. It honestly scares me when I don't feel this way. Who doesn't want to feel wanted? Who doesn't want to feel special and cherished by someone? But I just have to remind myself time and time again that the only one that can fill that void completely is Jesus. No human being, no friend, no best friend, no boyfriend, or husband can ever fill that void. Yes, they can make me feel loved and cherished, but they cannot complete me. They can encourage and challenge me to be a better person everyday, but they cannot change me. Only God is able to fill the void and give me my identity. Only God can help me discover who I am as an individual.

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"We will never find what we are looking for in the things we pick up along the way. Not even the religious things. Not even important things like relationships. All of these things will leave our souls empty if we try to force them to satisfy our thirst. The true object of our search is nothing less than an encounter with the Holy One." (Sacred Thirst, by M. Craig Barnes)

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Why should I put all of my energy into trying to impress those around me, gaining guys attention and spending way too much time on my outward appearance? I should be giving my time and energy over to Jesus- becoming crazy for him and living passionately for the one who sacrificed it all for me. I think of the song, Undignified by David Crowder Band. I absolutely loved this song from the moment we sang it at Tuesday morning bible study in high school. It's kind of a really simple camp-type song. The lyrics are; "I will dance, I will sing to be mad for my King. Nothing Lord is hindering this passion in my soul. And I'll become even more undignified than this... some may say it's foolishness. But I'll become even more undignified than this... leave my pride by my side. And I'll become even more undignified than this... some may say it's foolishness... but I'll become even more undignified than this." Don't the lyrics of this song just make you want to go crazy for the one who is crazy in love with you? Doesn't it just amaze you that God made the ultimate sacrifice for us because he loved us?!

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"God so LOVED the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him will not perish but have everlasting life. God made a bold and unflinching proclamation of abiding, endless love to all mankind, and Jesus came to be made a fool of, all in the hope that He would win the hearts of His beloved ones. Only a passionate lover is willing to look foolish for his beloved..."

"We need that love to make us fearless in our devotion. We need the kind of passion that turns us into willing fools, people who couldn't care less what the world thinks of us. I want the kind of passion and love for Christ that is oblivious to everything but Him. If He holds my heart, I need nothing else. The sound of His voice makes my heart pound, and there's no room in my ears for any scorn or insult."

(Falling In Love With God: The Greatest Romance, by Jennifer Hartline)

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The other day as I was working at the cash register, I was ringing up a girl who was with her mom and grandma. As I handed them the bag with their final purchase in it, I must have flipped the bag on its side, exposing the bottom to the mom and grandma. The mom grabs the bag and shows the grandma the bottom of the bag with excitement, "This store is so great, they even have a bible verse on the bottom of the bags!" The Grandma smiled a big smile and said, "Wow! That is great!" I smirked to myself and laughed a little, but then responded with, "Yeah, that is great!" I don't know if you've ever noticed that at the bottom of a Forever 21 bag is printed; John 3:16. When I first noticed this a long time ago, I probably thought it was as great as the grandma or mom in the store the other day did. But as I've shopped there more and more over the years, sometimes I forget the hidden message on the bottom crease of yellow plastic. So simple, yet so complex. Such a nice, short verse, but so much depth to the words. Sometimes I wonder how in such a secular company, we manage to keep the verse at the bottom of our bags. What a great message! I sometimes wonder how people who have never picked up a bible in their lives react to finding this imprinted on the bottom of their shopping bag. Do they look it up? Are they curious in the least? This little verse tells them of the greatest love they could ever know! This verse tells them they can have an eternity with the one who loves them more than any human possibly could... if they just accept, believe, and confess. If I just accept, believe, and confess... I have life. Wow, what a gift!

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"You are my Forever Love. From the bottom of my heart I'll sing to you. From the depths of who I am I love You. With everything inside I'll run to You. 'Cause all that I've become I owe to You. Nothing in this world could ever separate us. I will love You more than anyone on earth. Nothing I desire could ever satisfy me the way that You do. 'Cause You are my Forever Love." - Francesca Battistelli