Stories

I've been seeing the phrase "write your own story" in the crafty world recently.  I can across it on Etsy in association with some typewriter motifs, and I actually have a rubber stamp that has a typewriter and that phrase on it.  I think it's one of those nice, warm-fuzzy kind of phrases.  Writing our own stories sounds like a nice concept.  But what does it really mean?  Beyond the nice idea of writing a story, what is this phrase saying?

Well, I'm honestly not sure what is meant by the phrase because I don't really know what sense it is used in.  Probably in most cases, it is not used to mean any specific philosophy, but just a nice phrase that looks good with a typewriter.

But all the same, "write your own story" got me thinking about the concept of stories.  And so I thought I'd share my thoughts.  This doesn't really have to do with graphic design (well, I guess it could in a big picture type way...) but I wanted to post it anyway because it is something I have been mulling over.

In the sense of writing stories, I think "write your own story" is perfectly harmless.  I like writing stories.  It's fun.  It's creative.  And I think writing is a gift from God that can be used to honor Him.  And in the sense of writing stories, yes, the stories should be our own and not someone else's.

But that's not really the point.  I think this phrase plays into something a whole lot bigger, and that's the stories of our lives.  That phrase is used casually sometimes - you know, things like "being tired is the story of my life."  But the real story... it's pretty serious.

If it's up to us to write our own story for our lives, that's a huge responsibility.  What if we mess up?  What if one blunder completely messes up our the whole happy ending we had planned?  I think that sounds like a pretty fear-filled way to live.  Doesn't it?

And it also means that our life stories are about us.  If we write them, they're ours.  If we write our own stories, our lives belong to ourselves and it's our job to plan out our lives and do all we can do make our stories just the way we want them.

That's where the "write your own story" concept falls short: it's not about us.  God has created us, and for those of you who are Christians, you belong to God.  It's about HIM, not any of us. 

In 1 Corinthians 6:19b-20a, it says:
You are not your own, for you were bought with a price.

I'm not my own?  So that means that none of me is my own, including the story of my life.  If God has bought me with a price - the blood of Jesus - (and He HAS!), then I belong to Him.  Me and my story, too.  And this is so good.  This means that my future and controlling my story is not up to me.  And I don't have to be afraid of messing up or making the wrong decision - because it's ultimately not in my control.

And God loves me.  He knows what is best for me and He will accomplish those plans - He says so in His Word.


Jeremiah 29:11:
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.

And God is perfectly sovereign and in control of every circumstance.  He has good plans for us, and our lives are His story.  So I'm not writing my own story and figuring out the details of the plot.  God is writing His story in my life, for His purposes, and for His glory.  Ultimately, I'm not here to be the main character in a good story at all.  I'm here because God made me to worship Him and bring Him glory.  That's the purpose of life!  And that's also the thing that brings us the most joy.  I love this quote from Charles Spurgeon:

"The purest and most exhilarating joy is the delight of glorifying God, and so anticipating the time when we shall enjoy him for ever." - C.H. Spurgeon

Sometimes I can be deceived into thinking that trying to do my own thing and make myself happy actually will make me happy.  But that's all wrong.  Nothing apart from God Himself and honoring Him and bringing Him glory gives me joy.  And trying to satisfy myself won't satisfy me - in fact, that's the mindset God graciously saved me from.

I love that the C.H. Spurgeon quote talks about Heaven - that's the "time when we shall enjoy him for ever."  When we delight in bringing God glory by embracing the story He's writing in our lives, we get joy that's a little foretaste of the final joy we'll experience in Heaven.

But until then....

And I'm so grateful and so glad that it is.