Conflict

I have been flying through Don's new book and absolutely loving it.  Hard at this point to know where to rank it... but it fits right up there with Blue Like Jazz and Searching for God Knows What.  But, it is an entirely different type of book than the two I just mentioned.  This book is all about living your story.  You know, the story God is allowing you to help write?  Its not a book about simply telling your story or writing it, but really living it.

One of the parts that has got me thinking was when Don was talking about stories being told in conflict.  The great stories are those that the character (most likely an underdog in life) encounters immense conflict, but somehow finds his way and ends up conquering the conflict.  Those are the stories we remember.  Those are the stories we are inspired by. He goes on to say that though those stories move us, we are unwilling to recognize the potential greatness of the story we are in.  We see God as an unjust/unfair character, but really, he is the master storyteller hard at work.

Naturally, this got me thinking about my story.  And, to be perfectly honest, I am guilty of viewing God as an unfair character from time to time.  Life has been rough lately and I feel like I have been thrown through the mud once or twice these past few months and sometimes its hard to see beyond the next curve in the road.  But, it stands to reason, that my life might just be in conflict (at the present time) and this is just one chapter that God is masterfully writing to be included in the novel that is my life.

You see, its the conflicts in your life that allow you to be able to relate to others.  If life was easy, perfect and smooth, we wouldn't need God.  We could easily become complacent and forget the value of a loving God.  And I believe when my life is not in conflict, I default to this mechanism.  It becomes easy to start my day without God and end it falling asleep before my prayers begin.  But, when in conflict, it seems like God is reminding me subtly, that I do need Him and most importantly, that He is there to be needed.

I am excited to read the rest of this book.  I feel like I am in a season where I am learning to live my story instead of standing back and watching it be written.