A few days ago when I had gotten fed up with our hot and muggy bedroom, I wandered down to the common room, were the fans and internet work a whole lot better. I sat down on the couch to start to apply to college when the book “Uninvited” by Lysa TerKeurst caught my eye on the bookshelf next to me. I started to read it, and I was immediately hooked. This book hits scarily close to home.
Today during our lunch break at ministry I continued reading, and a metaphor that TerKeurst uses in the book really stuck with me. She is on the topic of how to ‘live loved,’ or how to live your life with your identity in how much you are loved by God and not by how much the world loves you or your accomplishments. She goes on to paint a picture of a little girl running with a cup in her hand, all the liquid spilling out with every bounce. She is running because she thinks what will fill her cup up is just ahead. She sees God and holds her cup out, catching only a few drops while quickly running past. Her cup is never filled, because instead of relying on God to fill it she keeps running towards whatever worldly prizes she thinks will fill her up.
This metaphor was so convicting for me. I realized in that moment that not only was I living my life like the little girl, but I was even approaching ministry like her. I spend so much of my life rushing towards the next accomplishment or next step that I don’t ever fully allow God to fill me up in the moment. For example, I was so caught up senior year in graduating and finally leaving the country that I was not satisfied or filled up with the life I was living at that time. Even now my mind will wander to the next country I am going to, or I will daydream about how awesome college will (hopefully) be once I get back home. Sometimes while doing work at ministry all I think about is finishing the work as fast as possible so I can play with the kids. But I have realized that is not how God wants me to live my life. What I am “running at a breakneck pace to try and achieve” God just wants me to slow down and receive right now. I don’t have to finish all the work or get to a certain place to be fully satisfied and filled up. All I have to do is “abide, delight, and dwell” in Him. Once I do that, I can be fully satisfied at every moment of every day. I can enjoy the work, not just the finished product. I can finally be my complete, real self with my identity rooted in God’s love for me, not by what I have done or who likes me.
If we focus on staying in love with God, everything else will come naturally. We no longer have to rush through life, striving for the finish line, the achievement, or the next relationship. We can find joy and wholeness in God’s love for us alone. We don’t have to finish the work to be satisfied. We don’t have rush to find better friends or a better significant other to replace the ones that rejected us. We can genuinely rest and be okay with wherever we are at, or whoever likes us. Because all we truly need is Him. I want to remind everyone to stop running like the little girl and let your cup be filled to the brim by Him, as I was reminded today. Stop focusing only on achieving, also slow down and receive the love, peace, and stability God has for you.
