Keeping Jesus’ Perspective at the Center of Your Story
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Along life’s journey, each of us has a story that we come to tell ourselves and the world. Our journey may be filled with ups and downs and twists and turns, and it all shapes our story over the course of time. With our words, we narrate our life’s story according to the meaning we make of our experiences. The meaning we make, however, can be drastically different depending on whether we narrate using a biblical perspective—one revealing Jesus as the saving grace of all humanity—or not. Without Jesus’ perspective, our story lacks important interpretive details, and instead of telling a story that reflects God’s character and His glory, we can get stuck in a narrative that is insecure, defeated, and lacking in grace for ourselves and others.
God Makes Us Co-Writers
Jesus is at the center of the story of humanity. In Him, there is the greatest story ever told: the story of God’s love for His people. It is God’s love for us that offers the hope of salvation and a pathway forward in life. This perspective is what must accompany us as we’re interpreting our experiences. Will we let words of shame and disgust explain how our day went, or will we let Jesus’ words and teachings explain who we are in each moment? In Proverbs 18:21, Solomon teaches that words are life-impacting. As image-bearers, human beings have been given the power to create with our words and be co-writers with God. We see this demonstrated in the story of Adam and Eve who, by their words and actions, altered the course of history for all humanity. Likewise, by the words and actions of Jesus, there is a victorious ending to an otherwise tragic story.
Interpreting Experiences Through Jesus’ Perspective
It is possible to have a strong faith in God and still speak of our problems, fears, losses, and regrets more than God’s love for us and the hope we have in Him. Everyone has bad days and may go through seasons of grief and other difficult circumstances, but these experiences do not have to dictate how we interpret our story or how it ends. When we get stuck in a pattern of filtering our experience through a negative lens, we can choose to use words that speak life back into our story. Jesus’ perspective can take center stage in our hearts when we remember who He is, what He has done, and how that speaks in the midst of our circumstances. As one popular song by Hillsong proclaims, “He is a way maker, a miracle worker, a promise keeper, and a light in the darkness.” This changes everything! The more we factor Jesus into our storyline, the more we are inclined to find peace and gain the strength to persevere through the challenges of life.
Intertwining Stories
So I dare you to be an audacious storyteller by keeping Jesus’ perspective of you—that you are beloved—at the center of your internal (or external) narrative, no matter the circumstances. Talk about His character, His works, and His promises for your life. Carry Him and His ways in your thoughts. Visualize Him being present with you in the midst of your circumstances. Invite Him in to comfort, guide, help, and keep you and your loved ones. He is the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.
Our story is intermingled with the story of the gospel of Jesus Christ. He is present with us in every scene, every frame, every detail of our story from everlasting to everlasting. Holding tightly to Jesus’ perspective features not only the best possible ending, but also enables your story to be a powerful and authentic witness to God’s work every day.