I’m a bit of a rebel. I like living on the edge. Once I stepped out of the box, there was no forcing me back in. So naturally, my curiosity was piqued by a book entitled Breaking Up With God: A Love Story. Upon picking it up, I quickly realized it wasn’t at all what I thought it was. See, my idea of a love story is when the couple gets back together in the end. In my mind, Romeo and Juliet was a tragedy… and so was Breaking Up With God.

But I guess the story isn’t all bad because, after spending an afternoon at Barnes and Noble, I came to the firm conclusion that Sarah Sentilles didn’t break up with God; she broke up with religion. And for that I commend her. In fact, if the God I serve resembled the cold, hard creature Sarah described in her memoir, I’d have dumped him too. Luckily for me, Jesus isn’t like that.

God doesn’t call us to follow tradition; He calls us to follow Him. He’s not cold, He’s not hard, He’s not far away, and He is not waiting for a reason to smite you. Yes, He’s just, and yes, He’s fair, and yes, He often lets us learn our lessons the hard way. But He is also love, and He is also mercy, and He is also waiting with outstretched arms for the day you come running home to Him.

I broke up with God once. I was young and I was angry because He didn’t answer my prayers the way I wanted Him to. I thought He had failed me. Turns out, He was weaving an even bigger miracle than the one I had asked for. Seven miserable months later, I came crawling back. Because the incredible God I know and love is impossible to stay away from.

I left religion long ago, abandoning forced habits that weren’t done out of love. But God… I’m too in love with Him to ever stray too far. If Sarah Sentilles ever met Him, she would know. Maybe one day she will find Him. Maybe one day her book will become the love story it claims to be.

Today I pray that you’ll be made increasingly aware of the God of the Fairytales and that you’ll dance in the freedom His love breathes into being.