Introduction

What’s in a story?

“I came that they might have life and have it to the full.” -- Jesus, John 10:10 

A few years ago I was introduced to a workbook by Donald Miller called Storyline. Storyline is brilliant, and unfortunately it is no longer being printed or published. Storyline helped me do the deep work of inventory. I think most of us go through life without processing our experiences, and Storyline helped me process mine. It walked me through an honest look at the past and how I dealt with my personal history. It was redemptive, which is the healthiest way to handle the things we have gone through. Storyline helped me get a better handle on who I was and who I am becoming. Ultimately, it was an emotionally-healthy experience of personal exploration. So, as I write and invite you into the my story, along the way I want to take you through the some of what I experienced. You will be reading my story, but I hope to help you process who you are as well. All our stories matter and I, at my core, want to help others become their best selves. 

Storyline is a workbook with activities to work through along with his written guides to walk the reader through positive or negative events in their lives that have defined them. While working through Miller’s activities, I was also able to look for the good moments, even during the bad seasons, and I was able to see God’s pursuit of me throughout my entire life. I believe this who God is: a great pursuer of all people. I was also able to allow God to heal me as I looked at the defining moments of life to see how God had already redeemed it. I had always looked back on the hard parts of my life and assumed nothing good came from it. The only good things, in my view, were the moments that happened after choosing to follow Jesus. The activities in Storyline helped me see how God had used the hard, "pre-Jesus" moments of my life for good, too -- which brought healing to a huge portion of my early life.  

    

Defining Moments

We are all living a story. This is who we are and the place where we find ourselves. If we want to have a good story, the best, most compelling parts are written in partnership with God. Our lives are made up of “defining moments” -- things which changed the course of our lives in big or small ways. We tend to think about the “highlights” or memories that are most vivid, but what are the moments that define our beliefs and identity? 

I learned a long time ago that “Direction – not intention – determines our destination.” After fifty plus years of life, its remarkable and perhaps miraculous I am where I am today. I had thought about calling this, “How to Jack Everything Up”, because many of my early life decisions were poor ones. If nothing else, use what I have learned the hard way as a cautionary tale. 

My life has two halves: The first half was spent haphazardly going with the flow of my surroundings, tossed on the waves of life as though I were helpless. Whatever was going on in the moment I just rolled with. If I'm honest, I still have moments like this. The second half has been lived more intentionally, pursuing things that have value and significance. Those pursuits did not happen overnight, they took time and a change of scenery. And, they are still a work in progress. If you want to get the best out of life, in the end it is up to you to determine the direction you shoose to walk. Those decisions are heavily influenced by your relationships. As you look around it may require you to make some intentional changes.   

Defining moments are often shaped by people and are accompanied by relational shifts. Other than, perhaps, Mowgli from “The Jungle Book,” who lived life among animals rather than people, our lives are usually shaped by the people around us. Most of us were not orphaned in the jungle or abandoned on a deserted island at birth. Our lives are built through experiences we have with or because of other people -- good or bad. My life has been changed due to the people around me. If you do the research on your own life story, you will come to the same conclusion. Retrace the steps, look at the people you have been surrounded by during important moments. Look at the ups and downs, look at the choices you made -- who was influencing you or walking with you?  

As you read, my hope is that the best version of you begins to emerge. I think you will find the best you has been there the whole time, but you just didn’t know it. 

Where Are We Going?

There are some foundational pieces of my journey that are rooted deep within me. So, I feel like I need to give you a framework, or at least a little of how I process life and my story. My story is rooted in who I am as follower of Jesus. It's impossible to separate who I am from my faith. If that's a "dealbreaker" for you, what if you just read my story and leave the religious pieces behind? I promise not get overly “churchy” or religious. At the heart of it, is a story about ups and downs, choices, hopes, dreams, and who I am becoming. 

   

"Music, makes the people come together." - Madonna 

As a part of the journey there will be several references to music throughout. Music has been and is still a big part of who I am. I can’t help but hear a lyric or melody when words take me to that place. It can be any genre, even though most of what I listen to is rock-oriented. So, if rock and roll isn't your jam - it's my blog :). When I was writing sermons on a regular basis, secretly I wanted to name every series after a song. So, let the music be something you can sing along to as you read. And, if you get a song stuck in your head – that’s on you. 

I want to use the story as a sort of framework for where we’re going and the journey of discovering who we can be. But ultimately, I’m telling my story, it is my blog after all. I operate from a perspective and bias, and so do you. We all do. My bias is a deeply rooted hope for ALL of us. As I write the word “all” I mean all, this is personal to me. I hope you'll continue with me as I write my story. Maybe you'll learn somethings about yourself as you read about my journey.