My friend Matt recommended this amazing book to me… and I recommend
it to ALL of YOU! It is A Million Miles
in a Thousand Years by Donald Miller. God has really been teaching me a lot
about myself, the way He sees me, and how He wants to use me. This book has
helped me see myself and my future in a new way!
I have always been kind of scared to grow up….actually I
have gotten weirdly emotional on every birthday since 19. For some reason each
time I get a year older or finish another year of school I get this crazy
anxiety because I feel like I am running out of time. I’m the kind of person
that wants to do and see as much as I can in my life.
I’m an adventure seeker, risk taker, not much of a planner, kind
of a rule breaker, love seeing new places and meeting new people, relational to
the core, extremist, all or nothing….
And for most of my life I have had the impression that I have to get
all of this out of my system before I reach a certain age. I have also
questioned how these traits are supposed to fit in Christianity because I never
viewed Christianity as thrilling or adventurous. I have imagined that God would
one day give me a husband who would calm me down and tell me that all the things
I want to do are to dangerous or not practical. Then I would have children and
there would not be any time left for my adventures. I would have to sit back,
be a good (and boring) example, and watch them have their adventures while I
make sure their needs are met.
If I didn’t live out my story while I was young, I would
look back with regret because my time would be up …I would end up being one o
f
those parents that try to live through their children. But here lately God has
been showing me that I have it all wrong. He made me who I am for a reason and
He is not going to ask me to change who I am. He is going to teach me to use
those traits for Him, He is going to give me a husband that is going to want to
share my adventure not stop it, and when we have children our story will get
even better… they will become new and significant characters in the story. My
character may grow and take on new roles and perspectives but my character at
the core will still be me, the character God created. When a writer creates a character
it is done with intention. The character is created to perfectly fit the role
they are meant to play in the story.
In Donald Miller’s book, He says, “But stories are only partly
told by writers. They are also told by the character themselves. Any writer
will tell you characters do what they want.” God made my character with a 
beginning and an
end but He also gave me the liberty to create my story within His bigger story.
No writer wants to write a boring story! I think so often we retire our
characters prematurely, we think our time is up or we missed our chance…..but
the story is still being told…. It doesn’t end until our character dies. Each
day the pages are turning…. What story are you telling? A good character has ambition, overcomes
conflict, take risks, and make sacrifices. A good character steps out of their
comfort zone because self indulgence is boring. A character IS WHAT HE DOES,
not what he thinks or feels. If you long for a better story, DO SOMETHING!
I’m not so scared to grow up anymore. I know the story is not coming to an end and I know it doesn’t have to be boring. I know God created my character
with intention. MY LIFE WILL BE A STORY UNTIL I’M GONE. What kind of story? Well
its up to me, it’s a choice I will have to make each day. But it doesn’t EVER have
to be boring 🙂
