A Psalm

So on my phone, I have this app that gives me a different bible verse to read every day. I like it, because quite frankly it’s pretty convenient to open my phone and get to that app with the verse right there. Sometimes they really touch me and some days its just nice to read the Word. Today I got a really awesome verse. It was a Psalm, so of course it was awesome because who doesn’t love the Psalms… That book is kind of like a cure-all, and certainly knows how to give a person hope and comfort. If you have never opened it, I highly recommend it. They really are beautiful. Anyways, I read Psalm 139:1-8 which reads:

“You have searched me, Lord, and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue, you, Lord, know it completely. You hem me in behind and before, and you lay your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain. Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.”

It’s astounding when you think about it. Who are we to be so sought out and loved so dearly by a God so great? He knows us so much better than we know ourselves; he knows the things we are going to say before the thought even crosses our minds. Not only that, but he knows the details that don’t matter to anyone else- when we sit and when we rise. He cares enough about us to be familiar with our ways- our habits, the way we do our hair, how we like our food cooked, what makes us tick, what makes us incandescently happy. We can’t hide from Him. When we are in the highest of highs, he is there. The opposite end of the spectrum is something I think a lot of us have a difficult time believing- that in the darkest of times, in the lowest of lows, He is there, even when we don’t feel Him, he is always there.

How fortunate we are, how extremely blessed we are to have such an incredible God that wants to care for us and know us this intimately. Does He have to care for us the way He does? I don’t think so… But I do know that he cares for us the way he does because he loves us in a way that nobody else can and will provide more than a temporary happiness. A lot of worldly things can bring us joy or comfort enough to forget any kind of pain… but its all temporary. Wouldn’t you rather a love that lasts longer than a temporary “high?” I know I would, and I give thanks that I do have that love. Not because I deserve it, but because I seek and I find it in my God. So can you.

Just For A Season.

Have you ever found a really good friend in a time of need? Have you ever lost that friend after a short amount of time? Have you ever broken up with a boyfriend or girlfriend, or been broken up with? I know I have experienced a handful of experiences like that. Its one of the most difficult parts of life, losing someone you love. Maybe its because things just didn’t work out, maybe that person passed away or maybe the friendship just slowly faded out. Lets not sugar coat this one: losing someone you care about absolutely sucks. I have found that it usually sucks the most when you lose someone that you really care about, someone who meant a whole lot to you, someone who had an impact in your life because most often, these people are the ones you really cant forget.

Unfortunately, this is just a part of life, and I believe that most of the time, God brings people in and out of our lives to serve a specific purpose. Last year, my freshman year of college, I was in a completely new place, I barely knew anyone. I commuted so it was a lot more difficult for me to connect with people and meet new friends. I was taking a psychology class with a crazy professor, and there was someone in that class that I befriended, and found that he was in a couple other classes of mine as well. I found that I really was able to connect with him, we were similar in a lot of ways and it was so nice to have someone around that I could talk to or goof off with. I went through a lot my freshman year, and when nobody else was there he was right by my side and listened to me vent, saw me cry and learned a lot about me that not a lot of people know. He helped me through some hard times and was a genuine friend. Towards the end of the year, stuff happened and we kind of fell apart. I was confused and bitter and I honestly felt robbed. He had a big piece of my life, as he knew a whole lot about me, and now we weren’t even talking. I felt ignored and betrayed. Things were eventually slightly resolved, and I got over being bitter. I am able to see in hindsight that yes, he was someone that I really cared about, but he was placed in my life to serve a season. He taught me a whole lot. He helped me through things when I needed a friend and he was part of the reason for some positive changes I made in my life. I’d like to think that I was able to show him and teach him some things too, but maybe ill never know that. I’m not bitter anymore; in fact if he called today for a favor or to see how I was, I would be pleasantly surprised. But I learned through our friendship that some people are there just for a season.

When someone walks out of your life, know its not always for no reason. Know that you don’t have to stay bitter at them, in fact its unhealthy and sinful to stay bitter at someone. If they did you wrong, forgive them and let go. If someone walks out of your life, its also okay to let them back in but its important to realize that this person may not ever come back. They served their purpose and you can find peace in the fact that there is a rhyme and a reason for everything, in every season.

 “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing, a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace.”

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8