Your story matters



There are so many things that can bring me down, to let the darkness in. One feeling not good enough. I was talking to a dear dear friend yesterday and I started spilling my guts. I guess thinking and praying about the healing I am getting and going to get has opened some wounds. It turned out that me spilling my guts helped her too so she could spill hers.



This on my fridge, along with
many other inspiring things

I’m not the kind of Christian who can pretend very long that things are perfect, and quite frankly, I think that’s dumb. Have a good “God story” who cares about what your picture looks like. I think it’s normal for people to pretend that things are perfect. We all know them, their family “looks” perfect however in the background it’s all a farce (do you wonder if that word comes from Pharisees… hmmmm). The picture of their life “looks” perfect but it’s all a mess. You don’t even want me to go “there” and I won’t. We have to be real. We have to be real about our feelings or we are not going to help those who think “they are too far gone” for Jesus to redeem their lives. I remember thinking as a young broken mom that God wouldn’t want me. I mean, man, I was a mess, but God loves me. He was there waiting for me to just turn and embrace Him. And somehow, He uses me in all my mess.

He wanted something greater for me. He gave me this crazy vision when I was first saved. And I’ve seen the look on people’s faces when I tell them. The “yeah right” look. What they don’t know is that when that vision was given to me, I went to very successful women and asked them what I should do in order to prepare for that vision. In March of 2007 I started this blog. Wow. It doesn’t seem like I’ve been writing for seven years! It seems like three. When I read my past posts I think “whoa, you sucked as a writer”. But the more I write and the more I read, I think the better I get at it. Imagine, that advice actually was valuable (smile).

I think so many times we look at some vision of what we want and we think it will happen overnight. And so we try to make it look as though our vision is complete, that God has completed His work in us. And so we have a great “picture” but it’s not always about the destination, it’s about the journey. For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. Eph 2:10 We need a good and true story, or who is gonna listen about the greatness of God. Even Paul was a Christian killer and look at how God used him. How many people have come to know and love and follow Jesus because of Paul? Gazillions!

Be real, be honest, love Jesus. Praise Him even in your pain. People will see it, and want what you have. You’ve got a story. Tell it. Our picture will be complete, and perfect, the day we are in front of Him, worshipping.

Did you hear that? That was a little piece of shrapnel hitting the bowl. “ting”



Comments

Jada's Gigi said…
I was reading scripture recently that said something to the effect of "bring all your wrong deeds and "stuff" into the Light...so that God may have glory" It struck me that He Wants everyone to See your junk so that You and They will KNOW that any good accomplished is by HIS doing....Light is a fantastic cure-all!
Deb said…
Great post - and I agree with Cheryl - people will know the good that is accomplished is GOD's doing whenever we allow them to see beyond our masks.
Diane said…
The past several days, beginning just after Christmas, have been some of the most difficult of my life. Coming up on four years since I released Terry to heaven and I feel more sorrow, more sadness, that I ever have, even during that first year after he went home. I have always been a very open person, just tell it all. That didn't play into my spiritual life though. All my shame I guarded very close within my heart. Opening that deep and dark past has been a challenge but I cannot tell you how many women, young and older, who have come to me after sharing my story and wept openly about the shame they had hidden. Whatever this mess is I'm going through right now, I know the other side is going to be something magnificent and that God is going to use my story to reach out to others. I have to keep reminding myself of that so I can keep moving forward in spite of the pain. I love you, Margie; did you ever know you're my hero?! :-) <3