Tell Your Story

Someone needs to hear
How the real you came to be
How the failures and the changes
Made you who you are.

Someone needs to hear
About the pains you bore
About the disappointments
That rocked your world.

Someone needs to hear 
That peace can be found
That love can change a heart
And hope is never lost.

Someone needs to hear from you
That living is God's plan
That faith, hope, and love 
Are free and available to all.

Someone needs to hear 
Your story, your truth
Your struggles, your victories.
They need to hear your story.

Your story speaks the language
Of someone who is lost
Of someone you may not know.
Tell your story.

I don’t know exactly who needs to know this about me, but I have overcome many setbacks and failures. I was wounded by people I thought cared for me. I’ve been crushed by disappointment. I made poor choices years ago for which I experience negative consequences today. I chose to isolate myself from people because I didn’t want them to get too close. I struggled with fear and anxiety. My life has been a mess–setback after setback.

But the truth about me is much deeper than those negatives. My truth is this.

God has forgiven me for all of my sin because Jesus paid the price for them. God loves me, not because I am good, but because that’s His nature. I am never alone in my struggles because Jesus went to heaven and sent His Holy Spirit to live in me–to guide me, to teach me, to encourage me, and to inspire me. He gives me hope.

Everyday I have to decide if I am going to be joyful or spiteful. I have to choose to be thankful or bitter. I have to choose to forgive or be resentful. I have to choose to be a blessing or a hindrance. I have to choose God’s plan for my life. He reveals pieces of His plan everyday. I have to choose to pay attention and listen as He reveals them. As I obey, I experience a joy so profound I can’t describe it. All I can do is share it through art, poetry, acts of kindness, or through singing His praises.

If you needed to hear my story, I pray that you experience the joy of the Lord today. I pray that you feel His unfailing love and peace. I pray that you choose to cast all that hurts and disappoints you upon Him. He will take them all and turn them into a story of hope to bless someone else.

Tell your story.