What If We Shared Our Stories

What If We Told Shared Our Stories? 

Isolated. Ashamed. Guilty. Confused. Angry. Alone.  Those and many other words are how many of us have felt, at one time or another, in our lives.  For some, “at one time or another,” may be right now.  Why does this happen?  A simplistic answer; a War is raging and our only enemy (Satan) wants us to feel trapped in those ways.  We must never forget Satan is a liar (Jn8:44), a murderer (Jn8:44), an accuser (Rev12:10), and deceiver (2Cor4:4).  Satan does not play; he works, distorts, and connives for keeps.  What he wants to keep are the souls of people.      

This is where the beauty of God's Story comes in.  God's Story does not ignore pain and heartache.  God's Story looks our fallen world (all of which is under the influence of Satan) right in the eye and says YOU WILL NOT HAVE THE LAST WORD!!!  Because of this fact, our broken stories (the sum of our lives to a given point) can be redeemed – all because of God's Story (see “the bottom” for a bookend approach to God’s Story).  Make no mistake about it, when our stories are redeemed, they need to be shared. 

What if we told our stories?  Well, at the least, it would seem a lot of people should realize they are not “the only one” or any other lie like that.  Yet what if we moved beyond telling our stories to sharing our stories?  I am making a distinction because it seems to share one’s story is to open yourself up in such a way that you are willing to walk with and help others.  Somehow your unique past intersects with their unique past, and when this happens God is at work. 

Make no mistake about it, being able to tell your story takes guts.  It is not easy to admit to secret sins, or being a victim of some sort of abuse, or any other aspect of your story.  More people ought to tell their stories because it is a step.  It is a step because, while being able to tell your story takes guts, being able to share your story takes grace.  It takes grace because only God can bring redemption into someone’s broken story…and by His grace your sharing can be a vehicle through which He does just that.      

The bottom line is this.  Things like drug abuse, sexual abuse, materialism, the burden of crushing debt, and any other sin issue you can think of are well known (e.g., “told” stories).  While the deceiver will do his best to keep people thinking “they are the only one who struggles with _____,” or “they are the only one who has been impacted by ______,” I think somewhere, deep down inside of people, we know that is not true.  For example, a person cannot rationally think they are the only person who struggles with an addiction to pornography; my goodness, simply look at the sheer volume of pornographic material available (or read the papers when a “sex scandal” breaks out).  Yet the enemy can twist things in our mind to where we are duped into shamefully thinking this…

This is where sharing our stories come in.  I think if more stories were shared then there would be a lot less isolation, shame, guilt, confusion, anger, and aloneness.  Instead there would be communities (which make up The Church) of broken people who realize their God is a God of grace and no “story” is beyond repair.  Indeed, many more would acknowledge their need for help and say, “take my broken story and give me a new one”.  This new story would be the same in many ways, but with a twist – the twist of redemption and therefore purpose.  And this is a way “heaven” is brought to this fallen earth…  

“The Bottom”

Here is a link to a recent sermon at New Life Christian Church.  In this audio you will hear an individual share part of his story which includes being abused sexually as a child.  Sexual abuse is far more prevalent than many realize.  Yet our God is a God of redemption.  May God give us the grace, strength, and compassion to be the hands and feet of Jesus to those impacted by past abuse. 

Here are some “bookends” of God’s Story.  It begins in a garden (Gen2:8,9,10,15,16; 3:1,2,3,8,8,10,23,24) and ends in a garden (“paradise” cf. Rev2:7 – the same Greek word underlies all of those uses).  It also has the tree of life in the first garden (Gen2:9; 3:22,24) as well as the redeemed garden (Rev2:7; 22:2,14,19).  We must not forget, the only way the second/redeemed garden is possible is because of Jesus’ obedience in another garden – Gethsemane (e.g., Mk14:32ff) – which led to a cross and an empty tomb.  Praise be to our marvelous God!!!