Oh, God

I have never quoted an author in my blog before, but I feel compelled to share what I have read recently because of the impact a few words from a book have had on me. The book is Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert. You might have seen the movie. The movie is very good, but the book is amazing. How one person can be so insightful into the human condition and offer…well offer that there is hope in our lives, that even though we might be going through depression, loneliness and a lot of changes, there is a constant through it all.

Elizabeth is in Rome on an expedition of self exploration and is sitting in her apartment one night, feeling very depressed and lonely. She had been taking an anti-depressant but has stopped. She is feeling very alone. So she has starts a conversation with God, with whom she admits she sometimes doesn’t believe in. Then she writes in her journal, a revelation, “Who are you talking to, then?” She goes on to write:

“I’m here. I love you. I don’t care if you need to stay up crying all night long, I will stay with you. If you need the medication again, go ahead and take it—I will love you through that, as well. If you don’t need the medication, I will love you, too. There’s nothing you can ever do to lose my love. I will protect you until you die, and after your death I will still protect you. I am stronger than Depression and I am braver than Loneliness and nothing will ever exhaust me.”

Later in that chapter she writes about finding herself to be her own best friend. I think it is important for us to realize that you have to be your own best friend no matter what, because when everyone else is gone from the room, you are left with yourself. Depression and loneliness make lousy friends and don’t have your best interest at heart. So when we discover ourselves to be our own best friend we let in the possibility that God does exist and that we talk to God when we are talking to ourselves. Maybe wise words of encouragement don’t always have to come from the bible or learned scholars. Maybe wisdom is found in some unlikely places, like the words in a book by a woman we don’t even know yet seems to be able to look into our souls and find some truth. We don’t need to travel the world to find our truths, we just need to travel into our heart, and there, if we pay attention and listen, we can find the voice of God.