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Reach for the Stars

2012; Volume: 8; Issue: 1 Linguagem: Inglês

1553-9881

Jennifer Schwirzer, Tara Vincross,

Global History, Politics, and Ideology

“All over the world men and women are looking wistfully to heaven. Prayers and tears and inquiries go up from souls longing for light, for grace, for the Holy Spirit. Many are on the verge of the kingdom, waiting only to be gathered in” (White 1911:109). Synonyms for “wistful” include “pensive, thoughtful, longing, wishful, sad.” With these synonyms in mind, let us rephrase the above quotation: “All over the world souls pensively, thoughtfully, sadly, wish and long for what we have.” One such longing soul was Giselle Satterwhite, a college student at Temple University in Philadelphia. Breakup after breakup had hardened Giselle to relationships. When one more young man broke down those walls Giselle thought she had finally found love. Then he did what all men in her life had done—dumped her on the curb. Devastated, Giselle cried herself to sleep in her friend’s dorm room, waking in the morning only to see herself in the mirror, unrecognizable with bloodshot eyes. Dragging her body through showering and dressing, Giselle forced herself to attend class. Walking down the hall, she saw none other than her ex. As panic set in, her cell phone rang. Delon Lawrence’s buoyant voice said, “Giselle, remember that Bible study I told you about? It’s now. Do you want to come?” “Yes!” she said, turning around to head for the meeting place. At the study, Delon cut right to the heart of the matter, saying, “I’m not here to convert you or anything like that, but I am here to tell you that God loves you, and he wants to have a relationship with you. I’m here to let you know that the only way you can find some peace of mind is with God.” Today Giselle says, “After our Bible study I realized that something had just happened to me. I no longer felt any pain. The gaping hole that was in my chest was closed. I was the happiest I had ever been in my whole life. Someone did want a relationship with me, and it was none other than the God of the universe! I left that meeting with my head held high. I saw the