Holley Gerth - Hope Your Heart Needs: 52 Encouraging Reminders of How God Cares for You

God is the strength of my heart.

Psalm 73:26

How are you?

Im fine.

Its the answer we all give. Often what we really mean is, Im a little tired. A bit overwhelmed. Longing for something more. In this world, our hearts grow weary. We want hope, joy, peace, and purpose. Surely all of this is around the next corner, we tell ourselves. If we hurry, if we try hard enough, then well find it.

One morning I curled up under a cream-colored blanket that felt like the edge of a cloud. I turned on the lamp by my bed and sipped tea from a red cup with a little chip in the rim. I didnt want this day to be like so many before. I wanted to know the answer to the restlessness in my heart. I needed a real solution.

I did an internet search. I texted a friend. But on this occasion, neither of those would do. I reached for my Bible then and flipped through the pages. I began to notice verses about who God is and how he loves us. And suddenly I came to a turning point: I realized what my heart needed wasnt a simple answer to a problem. No, I was looking for, longing for, a Person.

We all are.

Someone bigger than us. Stronger. Able to handle everything. Someone who will care for us, fight on our behalf, and extend grace to us always. Someone limitless and loving, beyond our imagination, and right there in the intimate details of our livesalways the same and yet forever doing a new thing in and through us.

I already know God, we might say. And, yes, that can be so beautifully true. But thinking we know him completely is like believing we have held every grain of sand from all the shores of the world in our hands. No matter how much we love him, however deep our faith goes, there is always so much more. This is a wonder and a gift. With every new discovery, our hearts are filled and freed, strengthened and helped, restored and empowered.

Or maybe God is still brand new to us. We feel a bit shy around him, like someone on a first date. We want to know more, but our knees are knocking and our heart is pounding. Maybe weve been hurt by religion or dont feel good enough or have a thousand reasons why we want to stop reading and walk away. If so, thats absolutely okay. This is a come-as-you-are book, because thats the kind of God well get to know on these pages.

The God who scattered stars like diamonds across the velvet of the universe, the keeper of every sparrow, the maker of us all is inviting us to draw closer to him. He is the place where our hearts can go on the hard days and the happy ones, in the highs and lows, when we are sad or frustrated or downright giddy. He is what we have been searching for all along.

No amount of words could ever even begin to contain all of who God is. Whats on these pages is only a sliver. But understanding more of Gods character and how he loves us changed my life in beautiful, powerful ways. As you begin this journey, Im praying it will do the same for you.

We dont have to settle for Im fine. Someone is whispering to us, inviting us, showing us in every moment, I am God. I love you. You are mine.

XOXO
Holley