The Author of It All

Since I was a little girl, I have always loved stories. Any kind of stories, really...mysteries, fairytales, romances, adventures...anything that could whisk me away into another world and open my imagination to ideas I'd never considered before.

Here recently, I've started reading Allen Jackson's TEACH, a book for youth ministry leaders, and he touches on the concept of the Bible as a metanarrative, which in non-English major/philosophy major terms is simply a story about stories. I'm fascinated by this idea that the Bible, which was written by hundreds of separate God-inspired scribes, is such a beautifully-woven collection of these intertwined stories, each of which tells a little more of the larger story of the unfailing love of God and His plan for mankind's redemption. Only one Author could pull that off, and He's written the all-time bestseller (literally).

And the cool thing is...He continues to craft new stories every single day. Every moment of every human life is in His perfect hands, and He's using these miraculous stories of love, joy, peace, pain, and suffering to draw His children, His characters closer and closer to Him. I haven't stopped loving stories, but now that I've grown up, I have more of an affinity for the stories God writes...mysteries, fairytales, romances, adventures...there is no shortage of them. I'm exhilarated by my own story and find each new page more thrilling than the last even if the conflicts seem to have no discernable solution. It's in those times that it's too comforting for words to know that I know the Author of my story and that He knows my perfect ending...and every page and chapter before that perfect ending.

Sure there are times when I want to grab the pen from His hand and write my own version of my story, and He lets me do that every now and then, but He soons let me realize my misgivings and realize that His way is always the best way.

The best part is that I'm not the main character in this story...He is. I'm just a teeny short story in an anthology of God-written stories of every man, woman, and child who ever lived or will live. Each one having love as their recurring theme...the only true Love...one that makes you want to share your story and listen to others' tales of how they found it too. It's exciting to feel a tiny part of a bigger picture, a grand masterpiece. I'm amazed at the way so many of our stories are inter-connected with incredible people coming in and out of your life the way a cool breeze swirls through a damp summer night. He plans every chance meeting, every deep friendship, every love interest, every hurt, every desire, every blessing...all to bring glory to Himself, the Author. We're His creations, His characters, and we should desire to praise our Creator, our Author.

Take a moment to just step back and wonder at the unbelievable way He's written this grand scheme, and I'll leave you with this...a verse from John that's one of my favorites:

"Now there are also many other things that Jesus did. Were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written." (John 21:25)

You and I are those books...those stories. Jesus continues to do miraculous things in our lives every day (small and enormous) so that we might have new stories to tell about His great Love. So take some time to praise the Author of it all today.

I haven't been a little girl for some time now, but the stories of God never cease to whisk me away while simultaneously opening my eyes to things I've never seen before. Those of you who know me know that I love books...ok adore books, but there's only one that's changed my life. I hope that one day its power and beauty will change yours too.