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The Things that make the Story Mine (6:36)

I heard once that God made so many people because He loves stories.

Two writer friends of mine, Ken Gire and John Eldridge, who are wonderful gifts to the reading world, have written to the idea that our lives are indeed stories full of twists and turns, plot and subplot, tragedy and humor, surprise and, ultimately romance.

I wrote this song after a weekend retreat at which Ken spoke of God bringing "treasures out of darkness." He developed the idea that, even in the dark chapters of our stories, there is redemption and beauty to be found.

I was in my last month of life as a 42 year old. It occurred to me when I started writing this song that I had been a Christian for 21 years, and that my life was neatly divided into halves now; thus, the ‘intermission’ that I sing of.

Might I recommend a couple of books? Ken always writes with wonderful clarity and relevance about the reflective life. I’ve read Windows of the Soul a number of times. His book Moments with the Savior is a regular part of my devotional reading. His recent books, The Reflective Life and Reflections on the Movies, are richly challenging and thought-provoking.

John Eldridge in The Journey of Desire and the Sacred Romance beautifully develops the theme of "life as story" and makes me uncomfortably, but hopefully, aware that my view of the Gospel is in constant need of repair.

i’ve been working on a 42 year story

i’ve been acting out a role that’s unrehearsed

Though some scenes have been sweet, some others have been gory

but i’m wiser now than at the very first

And i wish sometimes

That i could rewrite some chapters

Some paragraphs, some passages, some lines,

But it’s those parts i’d change, those lines i’d cut,

those scenes that i’d refine

Those things that i’d remove are the things that make the story

mine

Between my "once upon a time" and my "happily ever after"