Everyday Stories

We tend to seek out the extraordinary, the glamorous, the miraculous to discover a greater meaning to this life we're living. Personally, I find myself slipping into the blues when I think about how my life in the present is leaning toward the mundane-twenty-first century-task oriented-daily ritual of running kids around, cleaning floors, washing another load, and trying to consider exercising when my body is just too tired from my late night Netflix binge.

Yeah, everyday life is nothing to post about on social media. Hmph. And yet, I do...and everyone cheers me on, and I think we've all relented to the fact that this is it, and we may as well celebrate the likeness we all share--even if it's about hacks for getting that dirt stain out of our kid's baseball pants. 

This morning, I sat and read Philip Yancey unpack the facades history and people have piled upon the first century Savior in his book, The Jesus I Never Knew, and I came across this:

"...I doubt I would have left any encounter with Jesus feeling smug or self-satisfied. I would have marveled at Jesus' parables, a form that became his trademark. Writers ever since have admired his skill in communicating profound truth through such everyday stories. A scolding woman wears down the patience of a judge. A king plunges into an ill-planned war. A group of children quarrel in the street...There are no fanciful creatures and sinuous plots in Jesus' parables; he simply describes the life around him."

I wonder what parables Jesus would use if He chose this century to share the love of God to the world? How great it would be to have Him come into each encounter and mold it into a truth-bearing lesson. What if I took my everyday and made it extraordinary--not by forcing extravagance or manipulating success--but by simply living it with a keen eye for deeper truth? Maybe deeper truth as simple as this--I am living and breathing by the grace of God.

As a fiction author, I often brainstorm how to hook the reader, and how to create the next unique plot twist. But, as my writing friends and I often lament, there really is nothing new under the sun (pardon the cliche). While it's all been done before, as authors we can only share the same stories with a fresh perspective, thus imprinting our story as unique in the eye of the reader. One Great Storyteller, far greater than anyone before or after Him, told stories that have lasted through wars, cultures, eras, and billions, and they were just ordinary stories with an extraordinary perspective.

Yancey goes on to say, "The parables served Jesus' purposes perfectly. Everyone likes a good story, and Jesus' knack for storytelling held the interest of a mostly illiterate society of farmers and fishermen...years later, as people reflected on what Jesus had taught, his parables came to mind in vivid detail."

Vivid detail.

To have a reader remember a story told with vivid detail is a great feat. It's what any author strives for. But to have a story of everyday life be so impressive and heart-changing that centuries later we can apply them to our modern lives, is something only an annointed Savior could possibly do.

But in Yancey's point about the tool of parables, I also find a lesson for me as a person sitting here, blogging for satisfaction of getting my words out, for hope that I am not just writing for myself, but for a like audience who understands me. The lesson isn't just for my faith or my own storytelling. But it's for my living too.

What details will I remember of this everyday life? Will I look back and see a striving, thrill-seeking, bored, wishy washy gal who grumbled about housework because she just wanted to be entertained?

I want to remember this time of my life with vivid detail--even in the daily routine. I am glad we celebrate the mundane together in Facebook statuses and happy tweets. I want to go one step further and discover what God could be telling me in those moments. What would Jesus say to elevate the simple to profound? 

 If I keep my eye focus on seeking out the extraordinary and successes, I'll miss the life that I've been given...the whole life, not just the shiny moments. But, if I allow my presence to be the gift, the simple place where deeper truth might be found, life might be a little more extraordinary with each step, and I might find God among the everyday stories.

What Jesus do you worship? Faith-Filled Fridays

Our pastor's sermon on Sunday is very critical to take away pre-conceived ideas about Christians and who they worship. It's telling of the times, and the confused ideas about who Jesus was/is.

Which Jesus do you believe in?

Click Here To Watch: Five Jesus'?

It's Personal

When I was younger, I didn't really get the whole "personal relationship" thing with Jesus. It seemed so...Protestant. And I was certainly not familiar with that.

Well...eighteen years later, I think I am finally "getting" it. And it isn't just a sitting side-by-side-with- God-watching-the-movie-of-life-and-sharing-a-popcorn-bin-but-only-speaking-when-it's- a-lull-in-the- show.

Nope.

It is more of the type of relationship where you invest your heart and energy to truly get to know Him, and you aren't just the talker and He isn't just the listener, but you listen, too.
I have been known to talk. Too much. And I have also caught myself (shameful lowering of head at this moment), to tune out a friend and formulate my next response. YIKES!! There must be a personality type that goes along with that...please don't say ego-maniac.

But, I have found, if I truly listen and wait on God, He doesn't just whisper, pass the route 44, and that's it. He bypasses the small talk and speaks directly to my heart...usually, filling it with the truth that sets me free--to be quite dramatic in a very truthful way.

There have been moments where He has not just assured me in our conversation, but has overwhelmed with His spirit's direction. So much so that I can hardly contain my heart from pounding clear out of my chest.

And it always, ALWAYS aligns with a deep truth in His word. He's not just giving me a whisper here and there to remind me that he's sitting in the same row...He's taking me by the hands and giving me His undivided attention no matter how loud the movie of life is clattering in the background.

There is such joy in that. And I get so mad at myself for allowing my circumstance to smother the joy. I think I get confused with joy and happiness. Happiness is certainly fleeting. It is finding a joyful moment in the flesh. It is a surface kind of feeling. Kinda like the happiness of sitting at a good movie with a good friend and enjoying a bucket of popcorn...maybe some m&m's too.
But joy...Joy is wrapped up in a deep belief in knowing that you are cared for, and that great things are to come beyond the credits, beyond 'The End". Joy is knowing that you don't just have a friend to pass the time with, you have a Soul mate who fills your bucket with just what you need.

Yep, after eighteen years, I have finally started to listen and understand this personal relationship thing. And it really is personal. And it really is real. And it's so much better than a date on a Friday night.

Christmas Plans: 12 Days of Giving

I have never been more convicted about the holidays until these past couple of years. Now that the boys are older, I realize how disgustingly materialistic our culture is, and how it has crept into the hearts of my sons and cultivated greed. They hear us say that "It's about Jesus's birth" but in the end, it's about the presents under the tree on Christmas morning. Now, I LOVE the excitement of Christmas morning!! It is so much fun to see the kids race to the tree and squeal with delight. Every good parent loves giving good things to their children, right?

But, what if we gave them a "small" token after a "large" time of giving? What if the prize at the end was just that, a prize for giving time and effort to blessing others? Not that they "earn" it, but they "receive" a gift just as everyone they had given gifts to?

Okay, so I am typing as I'm thinking, so it may sound gibberish...but this year, our family is doing away with the big Christmas (well, we can't stop grandparents, and extended family...they love to give to the boys and I would never take that away). We are going to implement:

The 12 Days of Giving

Starting on December 12th, we are going to sit as a family each night and make gifts for the designated person/people/charity. I have already sketched out each person and charity we want to bless, and the kids will get to shop for the materials, and even decide what to make. On Christmas Eve, our final gift will be one to Jesus, we will talk about the fruits of the Spirit, what we want to "give" Him this next year... (kinda like New Year's resolution, Jesus style). And on Christmas morning, the boys will receive, just as everyone before them had. After all, one of our family values is: "I am third"- God, Others, then me.

We've already started talking to them about it, and they seemed to get it...we've emphasized "It is a bigger blessing to give than to receive". We also shared with them that the reason gifts came about on Christmas is because we are celebrating the "birthday" of Jesus, our BEST present from God. They are excited to jumpstart this season with Operation Christmas Child this week! I am so looking forward to the holidays now! :)

Do you have any fun and meaningful ways to celebrate the holidays without giving into consumerism?