the shack

"trust is the fruit of a relationship in which you know you are loved. because you do not know that i love you, you cannot trust me."

"i don't know how to change that."

"you can't, not alone. But together we will watch that change take place. For now i want you to be with me and discover that our relationship is not about performance or you having to please me. You cannot find that through guilt or condemnation or coercion, only through a relationship of love. And i do love you."

this is an excerpt from "The Shack" by William Young. The book was given to me by an older brother in Christ. i found the book to be an extraordinary glimpse into the heart of one as they openly wrestle with many questions Christians ask themselves today.... Or even questions i've asked myself and sometimes felt alone (0r wrong) in asking.

don't read up on the book before picking it up.... just open it up and snuggle up with a blanket and a cup of tea. honestly....a few tears slipped out as i read the book. tears of sadness...of joy....of hope. perhaps it was because my heart was tender as i left the time of solitude and silence. perhaps. but perhaps something deeper was moving within me. it was touching places that had been stirred up in the time of retreat.

i found this book refreshing to my heart, which often feels alone and disconnected from God and others. it was a sweet break from books which seem to be yelling at me and telling me how things should be done and heaping guilt upon me b/c i haven't done it yet.