As I considered the next blog in the list of Out of Phase topics, Our Story was the obvious follow up.

Our story is the most powerful tool we have when it comes to sharing the Good News of Jesus with others. I remember hearing this in my early days of music ministry and thinking “I am not sure I want to tell my story, and I’m not sure anyone else wants to hear it either.” I have come to realize that I arrived at this notion because my understanding of my story was another area where my perspective was out of phase.

In most cases, our most impactful story is born out of pain—our deepest pain, which can make the thought of sharing it scary, even traumatic. So, we push it down, avoid any reference to it, and try to pretend it doesn’t exist because it may be a source of regret, heartache, and shame.

Shame is perhaps our enemy’s favorite tool for silencing us. Shame tells us we will never be good enough, if people knew who we really were they would abandon us, that we are irredeemable.

Our wounds can also tell us that we are victims, that the purveyor of our pain deserves to be punished, and that we are entitled to see the wrongs we have experienced avenged. However, we can neither own enough shame nor exact enough vengeance to sooth our ache. In fact, focusing on either shame or revenge will only compound our burden.

So, how is our story communicated in a way that points people to hope? When we give little focus to the wrong (ours or others) in order that we can make much of God’s redemptive work in our lives. This can be difficult to do at first because when it comes to our pain we can easily feel a sense of entitlement. However, Scripture tells us that Jesus became our sin so that we can become His righteousness (2 Corinthians 5:21).

In other words, on the cross Jesus took all of our pain causing wrongs—not just the wrongs we have done, but also those done to us. So, we have no claim on them. When we receive the free gift of new life in Jesus, we no longer have a right to feel a sense of shame or revenge. It is this truth that allows us to share our story – not from the perspective of a victim, but a victor! And that is Good News!

I want to close with a few thoughts about our story that I sometimes share with my life-coaching clients:

• We do not share our story to make ourselves or others look bad (it is not penitence or punishment).
• We do not share our story from the perspective of a victim (we are over-comers according to Romans 8:37)
• We share our story to make much of God’s love, hope, grace, and purpose.

Our story is not about our pain, but about God’s redemptive work in our lives. As such, seeing the story of our healing offer hope to others adds to it another layer of redemption.

To see our story in phase is to view it through the lens of the Gospel, which allows us to walk in the fullness of God’s peace, hope, and love.