A Loving Slap in the Face

I'm going to be honest with you: For a long time now I have been pushing God away on the subject of relationships. Having a relationship has become my little god, my idol, one that I constantly think about and worry over and just generally let bother me. It has become a bit of a thorn in the flesh, or at least I have allowed it to be. My sister and I had a good prayer and conversation about this issue this afternoon, and then the sweet dean of women at my college posted this delightful quote:

"When I have learned to love God better than my earthly dearest, I shall love my earthly dearest better than I do now. In so far as I learn to love my earthly dearest at the expense of God and instead of God, I shall be moving towards the state in which I shall not love my earthly dearest at all. When first things are put first, second things are not suppressed but increased." ~ C.S. Lewis 

It was a kind of delightful, Clive-Staples-y answer to prayer. I have been looking for fulfillment in a relationship instead of finding it in my Lord. How can I love anyone when I depend so much upon them? How could I uplift a man of Christ adequately if I am not focused on Christ? So it was a wake up call. A slap in the face. Much needed, and welcomed. 

>> Also, I realize that the above photo has little to no bearing on the body of this post, but it is one of the only photos I have on my computer right now of the trip my family and I took to St. Augustine two years ago (hence the 19), and I CANNOT STOP THINKING ABOUT ST. AUGGY. #takemeback #iwannago #nowwouldbegreat #ican't #toobusystudyintheWord #soonthough

Hey, you. Fall is coming, Fall is here. And the trees know the secrets of the autumn song. Do not despair.