Have you ever had one of those days, when you know beyond all doubt, that you are right in the middle of God’s plan for your life?
Those days are rare, right? More often, we can see God connecting the decisions we make, and weaving them into His plan for our lives looking back. In reverse, I can see God working it all out together...right on time, on His time.
I usually don't know the true value of a moment until it becomes a memory. With memories, I can see that God was faithful before, and I remember that He will be faithful again.
"For us, forgetting was never an option. Remembering is a noble and necessary act. The call of memory, the call to memory, reaches us from the very dawn of history. No commandment figures so frequently, so insistently, in the Bible. It is incumbent upon us to remember the good we have received."
{Elie Wiesel}
In 2011, I filled three journals and realized that journals have some limitations. From a journal, it's hard to see when winning was loosing, the hard falls that turned to beautiful blessings, the times I fought for something I didn't want, or when I let God fight for me. From a journal it's hard to see the feelings that came and went, or the lessons, experiences, and memories that are forever. I'd have to sit down and re-read all this to remember...and thank God for His faithfulness, for the people he put in my life, and the lessons He taught me.
"I thank my God, everytime I remember you."
{Paul, Phillipians 1:3}
In 2012, I'm creating a 365 day scrapbook to record life, growth, heart change, and scriptures that changed me. Journals are great, but we can't flip through them and see memories, life changes, heart changes, and answered prayers.
"Until we can center ourselves on what we do have, on what God has given us, on the life we do get to live, we'll constantly be looking for another life. That is why the word remember occurs again and again the Bible. God commands His people to remember who they are, where they've been, what they've seen, and what's been done for them."
{Rob Bell}
Our stories are gifts. We're meant to record them, remember them, and share them. I'm grateful to everyone who has ever documented their life to pay it forward, to leave a mark, to teach, to inspire, or to remember. Men like Elie Wiesel, Rob Bell, and a dude named Paul who wrote half of the New Testament, shared their life and inspired generations to action. The world would be a different place if they never shared their stories.
My encouragement today is tell your story. Keep a journal or take pictures, draw or just write one line a day. Your life is important, no one else will ever live it. Record it to remember that time after time our God is faithful. Record it to remember who you are and where you've been. Record to remember that Love always wins.
We already know how the story ends...Love wins.
Let's tell the story,
Lisamarie
