His Story

            How many pages would your biography have? If someone wrote your story for others to read, how big would the book be? I have been reading some biographies lately and one of them referenced a biography of the times that was 1400 pages long. That’s a lot of pages to sum up one life. Length, however, is no determinant of significance. I often think of the millions of lives of which no biography is ever recorded, full of things done and said that have made a great difference in this world. Yet no one will ever know. A hundred years from now – if the Lord has not returned by then – it is likely that no one will remember me or attach any practical significance to me. Maybe this is why people seek out and embrace their 15 minutes of fame so readily in our culture. The fact that my memory will be distant, or even completely lost one hundred years from now, might lead me to some existential angst of meaninglessness, with questions like… “What’s the use?”… “What does anything matter?” Questions like that always remind me of Ecclesiastes. Solomon had it all, did it all, knew it all, and left it all behind. He says… "Meaningless! Meaningless!" says the Teacher. "Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless." What does man gain from all his labor at which he toils under the sun? (Ecclesiastes 1:2-3) I take encouragement from this book that Solomon writes these things of the “under the sun” reality, because that is not all there is. There is more than just this material world to be considered. The fact is… my life is not just my story – told or not… remembered or not. Our lives in this world are part of God’s story.

            If all there is… is life under the sun, then I think – in the end – it doesn’t really matter. But if there is more… if the God of the Bible is real: Creator, Redeemer, and everything the Scriptures describe Him to be… then everything matters. There are no mundane things in life. Every biography – written or not – is significant. If this world and everything in it did not matter, then God would not have sent His Son into it. But His story finds its central “character” in Christ. And the cross of Christ infuses significance into every life and into every fiber of the universe. This expression of God’s love – made before the world was even created… and “publicized”, if you will, with the Incarnation is what the universe is all about, and it is the heart of God’s story.

            And my “little” story – whether I see it as worth a one-page telling or a thousand pages – is in God’s “book”. On many occasions I have tried to encourage people with the reminder that God always writes the last chapter. When our children stray, or when we face hardships and uncertainties of various kinds, it is good to know and remember that we are in God’s story, and that He always has the final word. And, from our perspective anyway, even though we know God is writing even right now, we also are aware that He already knows all of the final chapters. This kind of thinking could lead a person toward a shrug-your-shoulders fatalism, but that would not be my take. Our lives, our choices, etc., do matter. And knowing I can rest in my Lord… that by faith I can trust Him in all things… that by grace I am His… leads me to the joy of my part in His great story. I am a part of the Nativity story… a part of the Gospel story… a part of the crucifixion story… and the resurrection story… and the Church story… and the return of Christ story… and the eternal story of fellowship in His family in heaven story. So, with the psalmist I can proclaim, “He has made me glad.” May your experience with the Lord this Christmas fill you with great gladness and joy, and may you see His story and realize your significance in Him! AMEN!

Matthew 2:10 (KJV)  When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.

Matthew 2:10 (MSG)  They could hardly contain themselves: They were in the right place! They had arrived at the right time!

PRAYER:  Father, in all of life’s circumstances – however they may appear to me – may I see your hand at work writing the story. Thank you for writing me in, especially the part about being saved by grace and becoming your child. I love being in your family. To you be all glory and praise.  In Christ’s name, AMEN.”

Jesus Christ is Lord!  

Scott