I was given a gift in the fall of 2012. A revelation that was simple and obvious. It was during a lonely season while I sought hard after God for a fresh sign of His presence, grudgingly submitting to rest and quietness. It came to me like a blurry photograph slowly gaining focus. This gift was called The Story. It was a realization that the big idea of The Story was a common theme threading it’s way through every single aspect of my life. I began to see The Story everywhere I looked.

The Story is first wrapped tightly around the core of who I am as a daughter of the King. I have long been blessed by a belief in the truest story ever written. It is documented in THE WORD, a book that is filled with stories all designed to point toward the story of Jesus. My identity is inseparable from the original story written by THE Author and Storyteller. Jesus invites us into his story, our lives purpose to fulfill his mission here on earth and flesh out the details that will lead up to the most awesome ending ever imagined.

All this I knew, but it took on new clarity when I began to follow the thread of The Story through my God-given passions. The love of reading, photography, traveling, movies, music, and art all reflect to some extent elements of The Story. Beyond things and experiences, it goes deeper to a love of friends and family and of sharing in their stories. I awoke to the reality that I have a drive to share The Story with others.

I believe this concept of The Story has emerged for a reason. Not sure what that is yet. I just know that I have gotten excited about my growing list of stories I admire and feel within my spirit an almost desperate need to share them. Perhaps it is my unique way of sharing the TRUEST aspect of The Story with the world. I share The Story as a way of reminding myself and others of The Author’s presence in our lives.

So here are some things I have learned and know to be true about The Story:

• Our very lives were created to tell a story
• God’s stories teach us how to live our own story well
• Everyone deserves to have their stories told
• We feel joy and fulfillment when we live the story intended for us
• Living a good story is the only way to reflect glory back on the Author, God.
• It is easy to spot someone who is living their story poorly
• When our own stories become poor or boring or take a bad turn, we need to pay careful attention to the discontentment and resentment that results from living a storyline that is not in line with our character
• The reality is that there is a battle within everyone’s story. To figure out what your battle looks like, how the enemy is attacking and mentally armoring up to fight should be a part of everyone’s story.
• Sometimes I am tempted to jump into someone else’s story. At times I have even tried to force myself into a story that was not written for me. This would be like Harry Potter looking at Winnie the Pooh’s story and switching mid-book. I have learned this does not turn out well.
• The sharing of stories is a means of connecting with others, providing encouragement, caution and wisdom. It is a focal point of community.
• The telling of our stories promotes healing.

The framework of The Story has given me a new way of viewing life’s purpose and most of all, it has given me the courage to submit to the new adventures my Author desires to write. I refuse to believe that the best of my stories have already been written. I want to live an epic story that will last until my last breath, when the real fun will only begin.

This blog’s purpose is to be a space where I can simply share stories that I find worthy. As in all good stories, regardless of tone or lesson, length or form, there will always be a thread of truth that reflects the Author of the Greatest Story ever told.

I acknowledge that none of these thoughts on The Story are original.  They are a distillation of “aha” moments gathered over the years from authors and speakers too numerous to cite. Whole books have been written on this subject. However, Donald Miller’s super cool Storyline workbook and Ann Voskamp were specific catalysts. Even though this paradigm shift came about because of a melting pot of ideas planted by others, I have accepted that it is important to document my reflections anyway. For me. For my children and their children perhaps. Who knows what will become of this little corner.

I believe in The Story as a construct for life. Good stories reflect back to us truth. I believe that we were designed to live a good story according to a plot written by THE storyteller and author.