What Is Your Story?
O LORD, you are my God; I will exalt
you; I will praise your name, for you have done wonderful things, plans formed
of old, faithful and sure. – Isaiah 25:1
We all have a story. Sometimes it’s as simple as
growing up in church and realizing one day exactly who Jesus Christ is and what
He has done for you. Or maybe your journey, your story, was filled with
potholes and detours as He led you to your knees before His throne.
I listened recently to the testimony of a young girl
who found Jesus when she was broken, depressed, alone. Outward appearances can
be deceiving. She was also, in her words, a bully and truly mean person. She
was dishonest and did things she came to regret.
God sent her to a new home, to reside with her Mother
when all she’d ever known was her father’s house. He separated her from an
older sister who was also her best friend. He moved her to a new town, a new
school, a new way of life. God sent her to a place where she would hear His
voice and allow Him to work miracles in her life and change her heart.
It wasn’t an easy journey for anyone. She rebelled as
teenagers do. This woman-child who had once stole liquor from her father’s
cabinet and treated “friends” like nothing, wasn’t going down easily. Her
Mother, her stepfather, numerous people covered her in prayer. Church was an
obligation. Youth group was required.
It changed her. She looked around and saw people who
loved her no matter what. She wanted to be different. With God, with His Holy
Spirit inside of her, she could be different. She’s in college now. There’s no
evidence of where she was or how far she’d come. Except for that deep faith
that remains strong no matter the storms life throws her way.
What is your story? Have you ever stopped to consider
it? Maybe you should because it is in the midst of our stories that we find our
strength. My story began outside as the sun blazed down on a broken life. Psalm
27:10 reminded me that even when my parents shoved me aside, God remained
faithful. He gave a broken 15-year-old hope for another day. Did my
circumstances change? No. But I changed and that made all the difference.
Maybe you’re afraid to examine your story. What does
it reveal about you? Maybe you hear others talk about change and conviction and
that is not part of who you are. It’s scary. It should be. Because knowing the
correct answers to all the questions doesn’t mean you know Jesus.
It’s the same with church attendance and serving. You
can do all the right things but if you’re heart isn’t changed, well, then maybe
you’re holding out on God. It’s not easy to surrender your life to the One who
created the universe. It’s not easy to admit you don’t have all the answers. It’s
not easy to give up that control we cling to so tightly.
But that’s what true faith is all about. It’s putting
Him before everything and everyone else. It’s realizing who we are in Christ
and valuing that more than who we are in the world.
So let me ask you again: What’s your story? Think
about it. Consider it. Pray to the only One who truly knows your heart. Because
if you don’t have a story, maybe you should.
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