Before you click on that X in your browser and write me off as dorky, take heed. I was not expecting to even think about God in this instance. I was browsing through some pretty old mp3s on my mobile phone until I came across the song "Everywhere".
I know this song was released in 2001, when I was still in college and Britney was still all the rage. I was not a full-pledged believer yet. It's weird how I found the song lyrics to be apt:
Turn it inside out so I can see/The part of you that's drifting over me/And when I wake You're never there/But when I sleep You're everywhere/You're everywhere
I "upper-cased" the Yous since that's how I envisioned it. I know Michelle didn't probably think about God while writing this. It was most probably about a guy she's been dreaming about (not to mention the video with her taking polaroids of the cute guy next door, but that's beside the point :P). In the oddest of times, it reminded me of my faith. I grew up looking for big, huge gargantuan breakthroughs. Mountains of blessings. Obvious miracles. Neon signs. I have learned to love the beach because being that close to nature reminds me of how wonderful an architect and creator God is. But amidst the fireworks, the miracles and the tangible things that God likes to bestow upon us, I sometimes forget that He's not just there for the grand prizes, fun times or nature trips.
I recognize the way You feel/It's hard to think that You might not be real/I sense it now, the water's getting deep/I try to wash the pain away from me
It goes without saying that God is an awesome God. I don't need to be surrounded by fine sands,foamy blue water between my toes or endless clear skies to be reminded of how awesome He is. When it's a random Thursday afternoon and you're sitting in your kitchen with a glass of Coke in your hand, everything to worry about and nothing to do, do we always still think He's super awesome? I try to search for Him in happy times, but it dawned on me that in the most ordinary of situations, He is always there. That sometimes we don't need stark revelations to feel His presence. His presence and His love emanates through a million different channels --- through our family, our friends, even that stranger you struck a conversation with today. He's everywhere to me.
You're everything I know that makes me believe/I'm not alone
Or are we? It doesn't always feel that way; we sometimes ask for signs, waiting patiently for Him to give us a flashing red light...and we get silence. Zero. Nothing. We could be praying hard for a solution to a problem and it hasn't come yet. But God's love is not only manifested in happiness or in greatness. It's not even just in the ordinary, mundane things we do. Sometimes His love is evident when things are not where we want them to be. That's just how He is. His love is not only expressed through joy, laughter, proud moments or fun times; not just in miracles or marvels.
You may be having the time of your life right now, counting blessing after blessing. You may be stuck in a routine of everydays, waiting for a breakthrough to come in your life and sweep you off your feet. You may also be in a difficult and inconvenient situation, constantly praying for answers. In all these, God is with you. You may not fathom it, feel it, or even remotely think it, but He's there. You may not be basking in His awesomeness right now, but believe me, He is. He would do anything to make you feel His presence and His love, even if that's not exactly how we feel. That gives me a mountain of comfort.
In the words of Michelle Branch, with her fancy guitar and jet black hair ---
I'm not alone
I'm not alone
I'm not alone.
And neither are you.
And neither are you.
