March 12, 2006

Sometimes I really think we put way too much thought into God, and why we love Him.

I'm not saying some thought isn't required, but sometimes, like today, I get a greater feeling of God and how much He loves me when I just think of less than incredibly deep thoughts about the nature of God and why and how He acts. I feel His love more when I just feel, instead of trying to think through it.

I don't always need to know why I love Him, just that I do, and that He loves me too.

I went on a hike today, with a couple of good friends. It took us on about a three mile round-trip journey, part of which entailed being at what we lovingly refer to as a "sand pit". It is nothing but basically a desert in the middle of the woods, a huge crater, possibly close to half a square mile.

We saw two things that really amazed us in this desert today.

The first was how amazing something so seemingly hard as the walls of the crater could really be such a optical illusion for something so soft as sand.

The second really caught me off-guard. As we were walking, going to leave, we were all pretty dirty and sweaty from our little journey. However, for some reason, I turned my head in the middle of our tiny desert, and saw two patches of small plants. These two patches were thriving, in almost the exact center of this sand pit. The first thing that popped into my head is how impossible the odds are of something surviving in such a dry, intense place. Then I thought of how God can will anything, and if plants can survive in a desert like that, believers in Him can survive in a world as harsh as ours.

Today also marked the beginning to the end of my journey in transferring schools, with the last of the paperwork being sorted out. As of tomorrow, most of the planning to move should be done, and the actual exisiting as a member of a new community beginning.

I also am starting to find that God is helping me, more and more, to get over my tendencies to be jealous at the idea of exlusion from things, be it friendships, ideas, or anything else. I view jealousy as one of my bigger faults, so I am as thankful as ever for God's love and mercy.

Why would anyone need to be subtle about their faith? Is there ever any point at which we should tuck our spirituality away to gain in the eyes of this world?