“Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever. Let the redeemed of the Lord tell their story— those he redeemed from the hand of the foe, those he gathered from the lands, from east and west, from north and south.” (Psalm 107:1–3, NIV)
I’m sitting in a coffeeshop near my house as I write this morning. Besides serving great coffee, the Franz family (owners of this fine establishment) felt God’s invitation to create a space that prioritized community, rest, conversation, and a slower pace of life. Without a doubt, the decision to open a small business is always risky and I have such admiration for those who do it.
Still Waters Coffeehouse in Gray, Tennessee opened in January 2020.
Knowing what we do now, I wouldn’t have advised anyone to open anything in January 2020, let alone a coffeeshop. But through the course of the Pandemic, the owners found a way to get by. Now, it’s pretty clear they did more than just survive; they thrived.
One of the things I love about this coffee shop is that they have an incredible story of Faith, Prayer, and God’s Faithfulness in a season of doubt and uncertainty. The trials of yesterday became their testimony for tomorrow and the world is a better place for it.
The thing is, all of us have a story like this. We may not think it’s that great or even very dramatic, but we’ve all got a story to tell. Every human being that walks and breaths and hopes and dreams has a story. And somewhere, at the center of that story, we find the reality of the Triune God of Love – Father, Son, and Spirit – weaving a tapestry of goodness and faithfulness.
Not all of us recognize it as such. It’s all too easy for us to look at the disappointments in our stories with bitterness or resentment and sigh with Solomon, “Everything is meaningless!” But for those of us who know Jesus, the Man of Sorrow who yet lives eternally enthroned as King of the Cosmos, we declare that every action is imbued with meaning and purpose. We believe that our stories matter.
“Let the redeemed of the Lord tell their story,” the Psalmist declares. Your story matters. God gave it to you for a reason. Every moment, every event, every mountaintop and valley – none of it is beyond redemption and all of it can point us back to the Goodness and never-ending God of Love. As Paul wrote to the struggling church in Corinth, “All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us.” (2 Corinthians 1:3–4, NLT)
The people around you every single day have real questions, doubts, fears, worries, and hopes. And perhaps they wonder (even if only way deep down) if there really is a God who is worthy of thanksgiving. Is God truly good and loving? I could argue and reason and logic that, of course, God is all these things! But one thing that will touch the heart of people in a post-modern, skeptical, and heartbroken world is your story.
We overcome the Enemy by the Blood of the Lamb and the Word of our Testimony (Revelation 12:11). So, look back over your life (and perhaps the last 15 months particularly) and note the times when God redeemed you. Think about your Story and God’s Story and how those are woven together in your experience. And then, “Let the redeemed of the Lord tell their story.” The World needs your Story and God has given it to you for this very time and this very place.
............
This piece was first published in the Holston Conference Daily Devotional on Saturday, June 19, 2021. For more on the Holston Conference or to receive their Daily Devotional, go to their website at https://www.holston.org
Comments