Love Note

I kind of wonder which language I should write in. I really feel like writing in Portuguese, but most everybody I know speaks at least some English, so I guess this is better... anyway, this week has been rough. I've just gotten kind of burnt out while being here. At Liberty, they constantly try to improve you. I feel like there's always something I can make better myself about and I feel like somebody is always at preaching at me telling me that I can do better or be greater or follow Jesus more closely. And this is true. I'm not perfect, but I never will be. God doesn't expect me to be. Sometimes what people need is just to be encouraged. I was really needing that this week and God just amazingly provided that through unexpected ways.

At convo on Friday I expected another person to preach about something that people do wrong, but instead, a comedian (I forgot his name... maybe it was Jim Davis or something) got up and talked about how we can't take life too seriously and that we need to calma sometimes! I really needed to hear that. Earlier that morning, Sarah, my gorgeous roommate, reminded me of how important it is to spend a lot of time with Jesus. So that afternoon, I decided to just stop. I went to my dorm and chilled with Jesus. I let him love on me as I listened to music and let him encourage me and lift me up. I didn't care about letting God correct me. I didn't worry about anything I was supposed to be doing. I just rested in Jesus' presence.

And as if that wasn't enough, the next day, Saturday, God made it snow. I didn't expect it to snow enough to start to stick or anything but it did! I made a big snowball and caught it in my mouth and just played in it with my roommates. It was really great! This next week is going to be pretty hard as well, but God just showed me through the snow that He loves me and cares about all the little things. He cares about me and He wants me to know how much He loves me. That's amazing!

I had forgotten while I was here that being a Christ-follower is not just about doing things that pleases God. It's not about becoming more mature or growing. It's about your relationship with God. Christianity is knowing that God loves you and loving Him back. That's it. That's the core. That's the center of everything.