The Story of My Life

Last week, I graduated high school. 

As I stood in the ceremony after all diplomas had been handed out, beaming triumphantly with my classmates, symbolically moving my tassel from the right side of my cap to the left, an exotic feeling came upon me that I had never before experienced. The feeling that, from that point forward, the world I had lived thus far was opening wide before my eyes, unveiling the daunting horizons of possibility, and I was becoming smaller and smaller. I was no longer a child, no longer able to follow the steps in front of me laid by the expectations of society; now, I was staring at the blank page before me, realizing that there were no steps for me to follow. Instead, I held the pen. The reality that I would now be in charge of making life-altering decisions, fulfilling the responsibilities necessary for my survival in this world, and choosing which direction my life would take, had finally dawned on me. 

I am not even a legal adult, but the choices I make now have the potential to shape the course of my life. What if I make the wrong choices? What if I choose to spend four years studying for a certain career path only to realize that I hate it in the end? What if I behave irresponsibly with my finances and suffer for years afterward due to my poor decisions? What if I make the wrong friends, marry the wrong person, or raise my children the wrong way? It is no longer up to the adults in my life to ensure I make the right decisions. Instead, the fate of my future rests in my own hands.

However, the thought that “the fate of my future rests in my own hands” is thankfully far from the truth. My future does not rest in my hands; it rests in the hands of the One who had written my story before the foundation of the world was even created. 

God is the author, and we are the main characters in the individual stories He has written for each of us uniquely. Just like an author knows his written work – the characters he imagined and the plotline he created for their lives will follow – God knows us, his masterpieces, more than anyone (including ourselves) could ever know and knows every event, plot twist, and passing moment that will occur in our lives. Nothing that happens to us is a surprise to God. Instead, every aspect of our lives is simply part of the story that He has so graciously allowed us to live out. 

Stories, additionally, often consist of multiple characters, each with their own unique storylines. This is similar to the way God weaves the individual storylines of each person into His ultimate story, the one He has been writing throughout history that the entire course of the world will follow. This ultimate story begins and ends with God; it starts with His creation of the world and finishes with Him reigning over His newly created Heavenly Kingdom. 

By God’s grace, we get the privilege to be part of the plotline that will end in the proclamation of His name throughout all of Heaven and Earth. 

Job 42:2 tells us that God’s plans cannot be defeated. So, none of us, no matter how much we might believe it, are not writing our own stories. None of us are forging our own futures, or creating our own destinies. Nothing we could ever do could ruin God’s plans for us or His world. 

That does not, however, mean it is acceptable for us not to take seriously the responsibilities, decisions, and resources He has entrusted to us with the excuse that everything we do is part of His plan. Although the Lord knows in advance each step we take, He has given us the gift of free will. The gift of being able to choose Him and His ways for ourselves. God knows that true life can only be found in Him, which is why He gave us His Word and the ability to communicate with Him through prayer, but He does not force us into relationship with Himself. To do so would be no real relationship at all. 

So, while the fate of our futures ultimately does not rest in our own hands, it is up to us to choose to follow God’s ways and listen for His voice to direct our steps. It is up to us to abide with Him daily and to keep in step with the Spirit. And, it is up to us to decide for ourselves which type of character we are to be in God’s ultimate story - ones who are accepted warmly into His Kingdom, or ones who are rightfully denied and faced with eternal punishment and suffering.