Our stories, meant to glorify

By joannsblog2016 on April 21, 2021 • ( 2 )

“Hagar, maid of Sarai, where have you come from and where are you going?” Genesis 16:8

Do you like to cuddle in a comfy chair with a book in your hand on a rainy afternoon? Or perhaps you prefer listening to stories of your family and friends over a cup of coffee?

Everyone enjoys a story whether oral or written. Stories are the essence of our connection to one another. It’s in our stories that we learn a little of each other’s heart. We learn where we came from and in some cases where we may be headed in our journey. Some stories are adventurous, some maybe rough and painful yet all of them take us somewhere.

The Bible is considered a collection of oral stories, recorded over time. It was written by man but inspired by God, making God the author. Just as in telling our own stories, when we read the Bible, we connect to something much greater that the author wants to glorify.

Would you agree that like the Bible, God is the author of our stories and He wants to glorify Himself through them?

From the beginning of life, we were given a unique name that speaks a little of who we are. We were given a particular role in our family that began the formation of our character as our stories unfolded.

God wrote the outline, and interwove the characters in our stories. He doesn’t fill in every detail. He makes us coauthors in our stories when He gave us choice. I think as the author, He still walks along side guiding us as coauthors as we fill in the details.

If God is the author of your story, do you think He intends for it to be told? Do you think there is something in your story, He wants to tell to glorify Himself to another?

Think about that for a minute. What if the Bible was never written and oral stories were never told? What would we know about the glory of God from the beginning of creation?

Just like the stories in the Bible, our own stories reveal the very essence of God. He wants us to share it with one another. He wants us to tell others the adventures of our journey, the tragedies, the redemption we experience and most of all the love story. It is in the telling, that others connect or discover their own journey with the same author.

Sometimes it isn’t easy telling our stories. In fact, many of us don’t even want to read our own stories. Because reading our stories may bring us back to a place of great pain. What if, in pulling that story out and dusting it off, brought great healing to you and also to another? What if it revealed something to you that can aid in writing your present story or future story? What if uncovering where you’ve been, helps you discern where you’re going?

Your story tells more than just a collection of events and circumstances. It tells who you are and who God has formed and called you to be. Every person, every event, every moment is important to telling and revealing the glory of God in your story.

Perhaps it is time to tell your story, written or oral.

Lord, may we each have wisdom to share our story in the moments when You want us to glorify you through our journey. May Your presence be revealed through the sacramental moments that You have placed us in the middle of to experience Your grace in a profound way and to share those with our sisters and brothers. For You are present in each minute of our day and to share a glimpse of Your presence is sharing eternity with another. Amen