"Are You There God, It's Me Vik"

God is listening. All the time.
God is watching. All the time.
God is with us. All the time.
God is forgiving. All the time.
God is good. All the time.

I love the relationship that I have with God. It's personal and intimate. We have a special bond, He and I. Since I was a little girl, I have been talking with God. My relationship with Him didn't start from picking up a Bible. No, it started much differently than that! It started with a book called "Are You There God, It's Me Margaret", by Judy Blume. This little book changed my life when I was 10 years old.

It's about a young girl who talks to God about anything and everything. I thought it was the coolest thing that Margaret talked to God each day like He was right there sitting in her bedroom! Before I finished the book, I decided to have my own conversations with Him. "Are you there God? It's me, Vik. Could you please tell my mom that I really want those YoYo Shoes? And, can you please make Jimmy Stamper like me?" And so was the beginning of my many requests! (FYI: Jimmy did end up liking me, but he turned out to be a total dud! Be careful what you pray for!)

I religiously started doing the daily exercises that Margaret did too! If you're familiar with the book, you know the one! You stand in front of the mirror, flail your arms back and forth and recite, "I must, I must, I must increase my bust!" (Oh, come on, don't tell me you never did that!?)

And so this began one of the most intimate relationships of my life. Friends have come and gone. Relationships have too. But, God has never left me. He was the best friend of a 9 year old little girl and still is to this woman of 43. My requests may have changed somewhat, but He hasn't. He's still faithful to listen to me, even when I'm ranting on and on or not making much sense! He listens when I beg Him for something that I think I need and accepts my apology when I'm angry at Him for not giving it to me.

Sometimes I just like to let Him know that I love and appreciate Him, without bombarding Him with requests. I do my best to bless Him each day, instead of constantly asking Him to bless me all the time. You should try it. I like to think it puts a smile on His face when we just let Him know that we love Him. As I've matured in my relationship with God, I remind myself that sometimes He just wants to hear from us. He wants to feel loved, just like we do. Try it sometime.

"Are you there God? It's me, Vic. I just wanted to say hi."