the story is yours

We like to talk about stories. In fact everywhere I look, there seems to be someone talking about stories. “Let your clothing tell a story.” “Have you heard that song? It has an amazing story.” “Did you see my Instagram Story?”

We experience story everywhere. Good stories and bad stories. We lean in and get hooked on a TV series watching every episode and eagerly anticipating where the stories will go next. Sometimes we even set aside the important day to day activities of life to stay connected to these fictional stories. When we pick up a book, we search for how the story draws us in and how it impacts us. If it falls short, we put the book aside to gather dust on one of our shelves. Story is important. 

Our Front Steps Several Decades Ago

One day in the summer of 2007, I discovered ants in the farmhouse. Now, if you would come to our house and come up the front steps, they are huge brown stone blocks. Because the house is built of large brownstone, there is a 15-inch space between the screen door and the front door. 

And in between these doors Grandma had a few throw rugs piled so that muddy wet shoes could be wiped. And inside this front door the floor is carpeted. Well, the ants I found were on this inside wall to wall carpet. Loads of them. 

Trying to be sensitive to Grandma’s rules, I thought I had better find out how to get rid of them. Grandma was rather hard of hearing. So, I yelled to her, “Grandma there are ants by the door.” She replied, “Throw boiling water on them.” That wasn’t going to work, they were inside. She was referring to ants that could have been on the stone steps leading up to the house. Here I was stuck trying to figure out how to communicate with her. I shook my head no and yelled, “They’re on the carpet!” to which she replied, “Throw the carpet out.” Well, I was getting closer but we still weren’t communicating well. She now thought they were in between the doors on the small carpet pieces. I shook my head no, and yelled, “They’re on the carpet that’s attached!” With that she jumped out of her chair and said, “Well, get me the broom.” She finally understood me! 

Broom in hand, she asked me to hold open the door - the door at the top of the stone steps with the iron railing on both sides. With nowhere to go except in front of the open door, I obeyed and held it open as she swept the ants out and directly onto me! That day I learned how hard it can be to communicate. And I also learned that Grandma didn’t care one bit if the ants landed on me!

That story is just one part of a chapter in my life. 

Story is powerful. But how often do we realize that our entire life is a story. A compelling, inspiring, fascinating, and hopefully God-honoring novel made up of pages worth of life lessons, funny stories, and heart-breaking drama.

Think about the story of Esther. Here’s a faithful woman in the Bible who prayed, followed God and saved her people. We see only a glimpse of her story and who she was. But her story has been recorded and told for generations. Everytime there is a sermon preached or a Sunday School lesson taught on Esther, we learn from her life. We seek validation for what happens in our lives and we lean into Biblical passages in Esther like the one found chapter 4. 

Esther’s words were reported to Mordecai, he sent back this answer: “Do not think that because you are in the king’s house you alone of all the Jews will escape. For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?” Esther 4:12-14

“And who knows that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?” Mordecai calls out that God has made Esther queen so that she can save her people. That’s what God does. Through willing hearts, he shapes our lives and our stories. He gives us the chance to choose how each page of our story is written. Just like Esther, we don’t control all the elements of our lives. But our entire life is a story. A compelling, inspiring, fascinating, and hopefully God-honoring novel.

Let yourself be drawn into the story. The story is yours. 

Searching for wisdom and asking for grace,

Jody