Step Into My Story

Scriptures: Proverbs 16:18, Judges 13, Judges 14, Judges 15, Judges 16

God created and equipped us uniquely for the story He planned for us. But what about those who have chosen to remove God from their story, or maybe have done so without noticing? 

Yes, a person CAN be “successful” without having God in their life. However, contrary to what some may want to believe, our stories are not determined by how successful we are. This is why you will see so many reaching the pinnacle of success only to fall hard. 

As our lives continue to grow, we take on more and more: more responsibility, more decisions, more “stuff.” All the “more” overloads us, and we find that without God, we are forced to take on things that we cannot handle on our own. We want to take all the credit for the good in life, but we cannot hold the baggage that comes with it. We want to prove to people that we can carry the world when, really, it’s crushing us. There is a word used to describe wanting all the credit or insisting we can handle everything on our own… PRIDE. 

When we remove God from our story—intentionally or not—we insert pride. I encourage you to read about Samson in Chapters 13-16 of Judges for a great example. To summarize, Samson did things the way HE wanted. He had an incredible gift, and he used it to glorify himself until he eventually lost it. Not because God took it away, but because in his pride, he gave it away. 

Have you, like Samson, given away your gift? Are you close to removing God from your story and replacing Him with pride? 

If so, there are three things you NEED to know. 

1. You’re not the only one. Temptation works best when we don’t realize it’s happening, and pride is the sneakiest of them all! Our only defense is to constantly praise God for who He is and what HE has done in our story. 
2. It’s not too late. Read to the end of Samson’s story. You will find that God honored a humble heart and used Samson to fulfill an incredible purpose. You can bounce back. Embrace humility, and desire the glory of God to be shown rather than the glory of yourself. 
3. Your story is not about you… but that is for tomorrow’s study. 

Scriptures: 1 Samuel 17:42-47, Daniel 6:19-28, Daniel 3:16-28, Joshua 6, Judges 7

When we think about how our story will turn out, we’d like to think it will end with us having a glorious victory, in which our accomplishments will be recognized and even celebrated. We’d love that movie ending where we’re lifted on shoulders and carried off the field with applause… Or am I the only one who’s thought that?

There’s nothing wrong with this: humans love being loved by others. Affirmation is a legit love language. BUT, if we are to fully ask God to step into our story, we need to realize one very important thing: our story is not about us.

Look at your common “Heroes” of the Bible: David defeating Goliath (1 Samuel 17:42–47), Daniel surviving the den (Daniel 6:19-28), rad shack and Benny (come on, veggie tales fans!) (Daniel 3:16-28), Joshua vs. Jericho (Joshua 6), Gideon and the 300 (Judges 7)…

What do all of these stories have in common? They’re not about what the person did; they are about what GOD did through that person. These heroes had willing hearts and faithful souls in the most extreme circumstances, and because of it, God used them to accomplish incredible things for His glory.

These heroes were celebrated by their peers, and I’m sure the honor they received felt great! However, they set themselves apart by reminding the people that it was God who accomplished the things being celebrated.

Here are the three takeaways I want to leave you with:

1. The worst situations created moments for the greatest glory. Each of these stories finds the characters faced with impossible odds—often facing death. Still, they choose to stand firm in their faith and put God first. They call on God to step into their story, and they move according to His direction. When you are lower than you’ve ever been, elevate God higher than you ever have, and use that moment for HIS glory.
2. You are a living testimony of the power of God. When we stop looking at our stories as what WE have done—and rather, what GOD has done through us—we can use those stories to prove what God can do with a broken but willing heart. Use the light God’s given you to point people back to Him.
3. God’s version of our story is FAR greater than anything we could write for ourselves. But that’s for tomorrow.

Scripture: Hebrews 12:2

I’m not a fan of the “no regrets” way of thinking. I would not trade where God has brought me to, but I believe some better choices on my end may have led to a smoother—maybe even faster—route to this destination. However, our past cannot be undone.

If we can’t rewrite our past, how can it be anything but a reminder of hard times or regret? Well, by accepting that—while we can’t rewrite our past—it can still be repurposed; and only the grace of God can do this.

When we ask God to step into our story, we do more than ask for a better future. We are asking for a repurposed past. We are moving forward from where we’ve been, forgiving those who hurt us and forgiving ourselves for choices that haunt us. We believe in God’s grace and forgiveness; we are moving forward, determined not to make the same mistakes. Most importantly, we are learning from it all. This is the first step to beginning a better story. In this step, we realize that God makes it all mean something! But it can’t stop here.

A better story begins when you allow God to repurpose your past, reinforce your present, and rewrite your plan for the future—replacing it with His.

This creates the type of story that will allow you to point others back to Him. Some who knew the you “back then” will have a hard time understanding this “repurposed” you, but give it time and be consistent. They will see God’s life-changing power at work in you. Some who know you “now” will see something different about you that separates you from others. They see God walking before you, with you, and behind you, reinforcing this new life you’ve begun. Some who will know you in the future may be going through the same trials you went through, maybe even be on the verge of making the same mistakes you made. Your story may be what saves them from falling down the same path.

We can’t change what’s happened. Only God can change what comes from what’s happened.

Allow God to repurpose your past, reinforce your present, and rewrite your future. Now, “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith.”

Everything changes when you decide to say, “Jesus, Step into my story!”