I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, 18 having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might. Ephesians 1:17-19, ESV
“Tell me your story.”
These are powerful words of invitation and connection that I suspect many of us use with our students at opportune moments. If we listen, our students’ responses—particularly about their suffering—reveal key insights into their self-perception and worldview. Do they see themselves as active change agents or as passive victims? Is their world random and purposeless or ordered and redemptive? Is their narrative dominated by blame, shame, guilt, or fear? Or are they carriers of love, peace, hope, and joy? If they are like most of us, these perceptions may vary depending on the day!
So what about you? How do you tell your story, and what does it reveal about how you see yourself, God, and the world? British pastor and author Pete Huges writes, “The story you live in is the story you live out.” In other words, how we interpret and understand our story has a direct correlation to the choices we make (or don’t make) that further that story.
This is why the Scriptures spend so much time telling us both who we were before Christ—dead in our sin (Eph 2:1), objects of wrath (Eph. 2:3), and completely incapable of righteousness (Rom. 3:10), and who we are in Christ—sons and daughters of God (Gal. 3:26), new creations (2 Cor. 5:17), and friends of Jesus (John 15:15).
I firmly believe that the extent to which we really believe those things about ourselves (and in the goodness and character of God) is the extent to which we carry love, peace, hope, and joy into our families, schools, and communities. If we are utterly convinced that a good and loving Father is directing our circumstances for our own good and the good of others, the lens with which we view our story can’t help but bring joy, even when the circumstances are challenging. Then, as we view our own lives through this lens, we daily find more evidence of its truth. That’s when our difficulties really do become “light, momentary afflictions” that produce in us “an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison” (2 Cor 4:17).
Consider…could your story be a continual experiment to see how a life captured by love, peace, hope, and joy can transform any conversation, circumstance, or sphere of influence?
However, if the way we tell our story features a fickle, distant God and a main character who is constantly overwhelmed by outside circumstances and the mistreatment of others, we can find more evidence to support that narrative each day we remain trapped within it. Please don’t hear in this a flippant dismissal of suffering or abuse. What happened to you matters. But it doesn’t define your story. Author and pastor Tyler Staton explains that in the Biblical narrative, “Not an ounce of suffering from even one of his children will be for naught. All the pain we face is repurposed by the Spirit as a key ingredient in the redemption of the world” (The Familiar Stranger, p. 174).
Beauty for ashes. Gladness for mourning. A garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair (Is. 61). That, my friends, is a beautiful story.
Lord, we know that You have the power to write a beautiful story through us, despite our weakness, our pain, and our past. We pray for Your spirit of wisdom and revelation that we may have eyes to see the truth of who You are and who we are. Fill us to overflowing with love, peace, hope, and joy! In Jesus’ name.
Copyright David Schmus.
David is the Executive Director of Christian Educators.
