Imagine this:

You work at a store that sells beautiful handcrafted dining ware. One day, a customer walks in that just so happens to be a boy. He comes in, looks around, and talks charmingly to you. After a while, he keeps returning to the store, but finally he actually decides to buy something, but he doesn't have enough money to buy the set of plates he wants. So, you decide to give him what's rightfully the owner's for free. At this point, the boy loses nothing and gains everything. Meanwhile, the owner knows what you have done and does not say anything about how he knows that you stole from him. He drops hints and lets you know that you took what was rightfully his and gave it to someone else. Also while he sees this, it breaks his heart. It breaks his heart that you, his very own employee, gave away his beautiful handcrafted masterpiece. Time goes by and the boy decides he does not want the plates anymore. Over time, he put chips in them and didn't take care of them properly. So, he brings them back to the store. Whenever he brings them back to the store and hands them to you, he drops them and the plates shatter into a bunch of tiny pieces. All he can say is that he's sorry and then walks out of the door. You realize that he never bought these plates because you simply handed them over to him even though you knew you shouldn't have. You knew he should have rightfully earned the money to pay for those plates. The owner walks out and sees that his plates are shattered on the floor. You confess to him about what you have done and then turn to him to ask for forgiveness. You think that he's going to be furious and not want to forgive you, but instead he does something else. He looks at you and says, "It's OK. We all make mistakes and I forgive you. To me, it's like your plate is wiped clean. Free of chips and cracks, free of stains, and free of filth."

If you didn't pick up on the story, the owner was God, you were the employee, and the boy was whatever or whoever you gave your heart to instead of giving your heart to God. The plate also represents your heart. God created your heart and handcrafted it perfectly and beautifully. You are fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139). He took time to create you and your innermost being. With every ounce that he poured into you, He loved you more and more as you were being created. In my example, the employee in the store gave away something that wasn't hers to begin with to a boy that wasn't able to pay for it. This represents a girl giving her heart away to a boy who was not fully equipped to take care of her properly to begin with. In the story, the boy breaks the plates into so many pieces and then leaves her by herself to pick up the pieces. This would represent a boy taking your heart and then breaking it just like a pile of plates crashing to the ground. Luckily, the owner of the store and the wonderful creator of the plates showed mercy and welcomed his employee back with love and care and forgave her. This is like our God. We may run away from Him, give our hearts to things or people that do not deserve it, or simply just ignore what He has for us because of our own selfishness. Luckily, our God doesn't say "if you break it, you bought it", but instead He says come to me who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest. He tells us that he loves us, always has and always will. He tells us that we all fall short but Hs grace is more. He welcomes us back with open arms.

This scenario might not apply to you because you haven't given your heart away to a guy. This scenario probably does apply to your life in some way though. The "boy" could be drugs, sex, alcohol, or any other sin that you put in front of God and give your heart to instead. It could even be something that doesn't seem so bad like work, friends, family, or even working out. Anything we give our hearts to instead of God will cause the same results. Nothing can fulfill our wants and desires like God. All of these things listed above may promise a great outcome but in reality, they will leave us empty. God is the only one that can fill that void. Whenever we run away from Him and then run back, He doesn't get mad at you or shun you. He simply opens you back with loving arms.

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." Matthew 11:2