Those of you who know me are keenly aware of the fact that reading is not my number one hobby. In fact, if there was a ten hour documentary on the life and legacy of the world’s first cheese maker, I would rather watch that than read a hundred page book about him. Perhaps that’s an exaggeration, but suffice it to say that reading is not my first passion in life. With that being said, I’ve read When God Writes Your Love Story twice! And both times were after I was married!
Eric and Leslie
My first exposure to Eric and Leslie Ludy was when I was a young teen. During those rollercoaster years, I had a hard time believing it was possible to completely turn over my heart to God in the area of love and relationships. As I read Leslie’s account of her same fears, I had to smile. It could’ve been me writing! Leslie wrote, as she pondered on her pre-dating past, “If I surrender my relationships to the Lord, He might bring me a hideous husband who smells funny and is a complete outcast. And He may not send Him to me until I’m an old lady!”
Eric and Leslie have a truly beautiful love story, but it didn’t happen by chance. They weren’t simply lucky in love. They both surrendered this area of their life to God long before they met each other. God brought them together in His time and in His perfect way. And guess what?! Leslie was not an old maid when God brought her sweet Eric to her – and Eric was excited to find that God had provided him with a beautiful wife!
The more they studied and prayed (i.e., the more they fellowshipped with God), the more they realized that God wanted to bless their love lives. Even though they struggled to trust Him during some of their lonely nights, He was faithful and brought them together in His perfect time and for His perfect purpose.
Giving God the Pen
If you were to sit down over a cup of coffee with Eric or Leslie and ask them if surrendering their love life to God was easy, I’m sure they would give you an emphatic “No!” Surrendering those sacred areas in our hearts to God’s perfect will and timing is hard! What if it’s not God’s will for me to marry? What if he decides to send me to a hostile country as a single missionary? What if he brings me a spouse I’m not attracted to? What if I fail to hear his voice and miss my spouse when he or she comes into my life? Trusting God with our innermost treasures is not inherently easy, but it becomes easier the more we grow to know and trust Him. How can we grow to know and trust Him? By getting to know Him more each day through His Word (Bible), prayer, and worship.
Think about it: would you trust the clerk at your local gas station to dog sit for you while you’re on vacation? Likely not. Would you trust your dearest friend? Probably. What’s the difference between a clerk and a dear friend? We don’t generally take a lot of time to get to know our gas station clerk. Our experience with them isn’t enough to confidently say, “She will take care of my dog!” However, our dear friends love us and therefore would go out of their way to take care of our precious pups! God wants to be our dearest friend, but all too often we treat Him like a gas station clerk. We speak to Him, but we often don’t get to know Him.
“How do I know for sure He will come through for me?” The stronger our relationships with God, the more we learn of the depth of His love for His children and the more confident we become that He wants to bless us. It’s easier to trust Him the more we know Him. The more confident we are in His unmerited favor, the easier it is to hand over the pen and say, “God, I want you to write my love story.”
Outdated?
“Wait for God to bring me my spouse? What, are we living in the Old Testament? The only people I know who say they are waiting for God to send them their spouses are religious nuts. Everyone knows that dating around is the only way to discover what you want and don’t want in a marriage.” Though there are a lot of rather odd people out there sitting at home waiting for Prince Charming or Barbie to come knocking on their doors, there are also surrendered young people who are living life to the fullest. They are trusting in God’s timing and using their resources to serve God and others while they wait for God to direct them to their future spouse.
As Christian believers, we understand that marriage isn’t simply about our happiness. Christian marriage is about serving God as a team with your husband or wife. When you surrender your love life to God, He can provide you a spouse that will complement you in ministry and He can fill your marriage with joy. God can provide both – ministry and passion!
Think about it: God knows you better than anyone – even your parents. Wouldn’t it make sense that He could choose a better spouse for you than you could choose on your own? Just as my Granny used to say, “God can see down the road.” He knows what’s best for us!
Counter-Cultural Living
Chances are this book will rock your world a bit. You may read some new ideas that leave you scratching your head. Some challenges may even make you angry. This book is counter-cultural, but then again, the Christian life is also counter-cultural. As I was reading this book again, I kept thinking how I wished I had surrendered to God when I was younger. There were so many heartaches and so much unnecessarily pain I suffered simply because I would not surrender my love life to God. I’d ask God to be Lord over my heart and then I’d run out and jump into yet another dead-end, self-seeking relationship.
My hope and prayer for you is that you will trust God with your heart. I don’t want you to go through what I did. God has something so much better than one meaningless relationship after another. He is worthy of your trust. Won’t you give Him the pen?
Have you fully trusted God in the area of your relationships?