The other day Abigael said, “Mama we should just put a sign outside that says, ‘welcome to the neighborhood antique store’.” My precious children have been to every Trade Day, junk sale, antique shop and estate sale around and they know just what to look for. In fact, they have some of the best ideas. This last weekend we went to an estate sale that had a large beat up looking trunk in the back corner. There was a small sign on it that said “Ask me about my story”. It would have been easy for most everyone to miss, but not Natey. But on the way out the door, Nate turned around and said to the lady- “Hey, so whats the story?” It took her a minute to understand what he was talking about and then she slowly smiled. “Oh THAT story! Well you know the Titanic….”
We are a culture addicted to stories, but often times we miss the most amazing ones right underneath our noses. I suppose thats why Taylor and I love repurposing old things so much. Take our coffee table for example.
Why I wonder are we so consumed with being known? Being remembered? I might not know who planted the trees that shade my lawn, but I sure am grateful for them. Its there for shade when I have a picnic with my kids in the yard, that’s what matters to me. I think theres a deep part of each one of us that really wants to feel like we matter and have purpose. We start at a young age instilling into our children that they can be whatever they are destined to be. I wholeheartedly agree that we are each unique creations put on this earth for a purpose and reason, but we have become obsessed with finding our own and have grown dissatisfied and discontented at being part of God’s purposes and timeline. They are no longer big enough, good enough, powerful enough. “But I really really want to be special. I want to stand out and know that God is going to use me to make a huge impact,” we say. Newsflash us: He already made the huge impact. The problem is, we have no idea how big His story really is. Its the story that has stood the test of time. It is time. It is THE story. It is the greatest story ever told and the Author gave us the bragging rights to be characters. But let’s not forget- we are not the main character. So if you’re bored with your own story, if you long for adventure, mystery, romance and intrigue… I know someone that’s looking for supporting roles. Just a warning though, your name probably won’t be listed on the credits and its likely that those reading and watching will forget your character and back story once they hear about the main character (He is FASCINATING). But as He grafts us into His story it just doesn’t seem to matter as much about ours anymore. So much so, that when someone looks at our life and says, “Hey so whats the story?” we can slowly smile and say, “Oh THAT story…. well thats the greatest story ever told.”