The Story of Me and We

 

On Monday, I invited you to reflect on the chapters of your life, the story of YOU. Yesterday, I asked you to compose lists of events and experiences that make you, you.

You have a story you tell yourself that is impacted and influenced both what has happened internally and externally. There is a world within you and the world around you. Both are tangled and twisted together. Sometimes we don’t know where one begins and the other ends. But the truth is that you are uniquely crafted in God’s likeness with a light to shine AND there is a deep desire to connect with others. We are both individual and collective; we crave community and others can cause hurt and harm. Or as Carrie Newcomer has said, “Love is easy. People are hard.” I find this to be true. As you look at the chapters of your life, where is your story connected to another person’s story? For example, being a husband and father is a part of my individual life but is dependent on other people too. I have a story to tell about my family, but so does each family member. We know this to be true when we have a shared experience and yet encounter that moment differently. For example, I can feel and remember our family trip to the Grand Canyon one way; my kids another; and Gina still another way. We all went, but we came away impacted differently. The meaning and memories are both shared and distinctive. Our story is never just our own, but there is a cast of characters. As you look over your chapter titles and lists, are there other people there that play an important part in your story?

When you expand this truth, we start to see where some of the tension in life is at. Individuals inhabit this world in different, diverse, and distinctive ways. We want to own our stories, but our stories are impacted/influenced by others. To take this one step further: it is true that I have a story to tell where I am the lead character, not just a supporting actor. Each of us is trying to be the s/hero of our own story. We want to be the sage in another person’s story. We can feel like the victim of a third person’s story and even the villain of someone else’s story. Let these truths be like a light as you look back on the prompts from yesterday and Monday. May this help you edit your chapters and lists of important moments in ways that let God enter in. Our story is never about you as an isolated individual, there is always a "we" more than just a "me". May you find ways today to let God co-author your life and help you participate in the great symphony being conducted where each of us has a part to play. Amen.