The Ticking Time Bomb

   I want to start off this blog by saying that this is a story that was told to me by a friend. I have permission to tell it.

   It all started in middle school. This girl had tried to follow God, but in doing so it made her stand out more. She was an introvert, a deep thinker, had a really good memory, and tended to over-analyze things. This is her story.

   In middle school this girl was bullied. She didn’t have any close friends and she wondered what was wrong with her. She would go home at night and cry herself to sleep. Eventually, she began to think that she should end it all.

   Some of her thoughts at this point were: “I’m never going to have a best friend who sticks with me,” “I must have caused others pain in their lives because no one likes me,” “nothing I ever do will be good enough for anyone,” “I’m broken and battered,” “I’m a ticking time bomb,” and “does anyone truly see me?”

   She continued to have these thoughts for a few months. Then one night she began to think of the things she had learned at church and throughout her life. See, at this point, the thoughts had gotten so bad that she imagined the devil was saying these thoughts to her. But, on this particular night, she heard another voice. The devil would say “no one cares about you.” Then she would hear a voice that spoke the truth saying “I care.” Devil: “you are never going to be good enough.” Other voice: “you are always good enough for me.” Devil: “you are not beautiful.” Other voice: “you are beautiful, I made you.” Devil: "you are not loved.” Other voice: “I love you with all of my being.”

   The girl knew the other voice was God’s. While she heard the voices she began to cry more than she ever had before. She began to shake and toss and turn; and her heart beat faster than ever before. After fifteen minutes of this she got the idea to talk to God. As soon as she did that the shaking stopped.

   So, why am I telling you all of this? It is not because the girl wants attention or pity. It’s because the girl told me that the only reason she made it through those nights was because of talking to God. Without him she told me that she probably wouldn’t be here today. See, God is with us no matter what we are going through. He reminds us of our worth, which is in him.

   I also want to point out that no matter what you have done in your life, no matter how you are feeling, no matter what people have done to you, and no matter how people feel about you remember that God is always there for you. People are going to mess up and let you down but God will never let you down. You just need to trust him.

   Finally, we need to realize that we have no idea what people are thinking or what they are going through. People don’t have thought bubbles over their heads that tell us what they are thinking. The only way you will know what a person is thinking, or what is going on in their life, is if you ask. We need to be there for one another through difficult times because that’s what God calls us to do.

   So are there any lies the devil is telling you right now? How has your relationship with God been lately? Do you know anyone who may be in need right now? Are you willing to reach out to them?

   James 4:7, John 1:10-13, John 10:27