I was talking to a friend the other night about some of the things he's struggling with. He's going through practically the same situation I have been through, so he felt comfortable talking to me.
During my second year of college, I had fallen away from God. I thought I didn’t need him anymore and I would be better off on my own. Needless to say, that didn’t work out too well. I dropped out of school and moved home, depressed and ready to start a new chapter of my life.
After I went back to my hometown and started going back to church, it took me a long time to get over the fact that I had fallen away. I am too hard on myself sometimes. Nothing I did helped me to understand why I had let myself fall away, and why God had allowed it to happen. What I didn’t know then is that God’s perfect love was working in my weakness.
My story has affected those around me. Sometimes the greatest thing someone can hear is that they aren't alone in this world. That other people struggle with the same things. It makes us feel like we are normal, like we aren't weird or strange. If there was no other reason for me to struggle with life other than to provide comfort for other people struggling, I would be ok with that.
The times I've truly been down, I've relied on God the most. It’s a beautiful thing to enter into worship in full reliance upon God. When it seems like your whole world is crumbling, worship gets real.
So when I was talking to my friend the other night, he told me it's good to know that he isn't alone, and that someone understands what he's going through. It's reassuring to me to know that somehow I've affected people in a positive way. I'm glad that somehow God can make good out of the bad even when it seems like there is no hope in our pain.
There is comfort in pain.
Travis Goodspeed is a Junior Religion major at Wright State University in Fairborn, OH. He has a passion to reach people through music. This passion was acted upon in 2007 when he joined the worship band at his home church. Travis is excited to a part of this online community and can't wait to share some of his thoughts, comments, and dreams about worship.