Fans of Casting Crowns know that the group has a CD out called LifeSong. I don’t own that CD though. It’s not because I’m against Casting Crowns. I’m not. I think they’re a great group. I just don’t happen to buy a lot of music and even when I do, I don’t usually find the time to listen to it.
I am not a singer either, but I am a writer and I love a good story. I pondered this some today as I was doing some shopping. (Blog readers know I’m writing early. I’m heading on a trip to Florida tomorrow for a friend’s wedding and I have to be up early to catch my flight. If you don’t see a blog for a few days, that’s why.)
I wonder how often we actually consider our lives a story. I had to go get an eye exam today for example and get some new lenses for my glasses. I sat in the waiting room pondering my life as a story and it made me see things in a new perspective. The girl who walked in was more noticeable then and I paid attention to her name. I felt like I was on an episode of Monk where I needed to learn every detail about the world around me.
I also pondered the way the story is usually told. There are times I can seem to be the narrator of my own life where I am telling the story from my perspective. Then, there are times where I can imagine bringing in a third party and having that third party describe all that is going on.
Is such a story exciting? It certainly is. Our lives are not meant to be humdrum. We’re involved in the greatest adventure of all and we have a story to share. Our stories are part of the greatest story of all and all of these stories are interacting together to bring harmony. The parts that don’t seem to fit now I believe will fit beautifully from the perspective of eternity.
C.S. Lewis said there are no ordinary people. Let’s take that a step further. There are no ordinary actions or ordinary days either. Each thing you do whether private or public effects the story as a whole for each one changes you somehow at least and that changes the you that you present to the world.
With this in mind, we need to watch ourselves. We need to get control of our thought life but also to enjoy it at times. We need to realize also that our fellow man is indeed interesting. Unfortunately, we can see them as people that tend to just get in the way. Nope. They’re creatures that bear the image of God also.
This should also lead us to trust. The greatest authors of all present their heroes with trials and difficulties. However, pick your favorite work of fiction. When the hero reached a dangerous point or a tragedy occurred, did you chuck the book out the window and say “The author doesn’t know what he’s doing!” Obviously not, or else it wouldn’t be your favorite. No. You keep going because you trust the author. If he’s allowed something bad to happen, it is for a reason. It is a shame we don’t do that with the greatest author of all.
As you go through your future days, picture your life as a story and trust the one who holds the pen.
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