What is the story you are telling yourself, about yourself and your life? What is the theme of the tape recorder cued to play in your mind each day? Would it be a drama set to have a terrible ending, or perhaps a thriller with trouble lurking around each corner? For most, unfortunately, the story that is set to play is not one of hope or confidence.
This is problematic because the stories we tell ourselves matter. They have a huge influence on our emotional, mental, physical, and spiritual health and, in turn, our interpretations of and responses to incidents. Our stories are seldom based on truth. Our stories are usually formulated through lenses composed of lies birthed in hurts and disappointments.
These continue to exert influence on our present and future because of the way they influence the story we tell ourselves and live onwards.
The hope I offer is that these stories can change. Narrative therapy recognises this and sets out to assist clients to re-frame or re-tell their life stories, and formulate new perspectives that inspire hope and creative problem solution. This form of therapy has been shown to have results within the mental health sphere.
Narrative therapy looks to the self to reformulate stories, but I suggest that we look to our Creator to come rewrite our stories. He is, as per Psalm 139:16, the one who wrote a book about each one of us before we were even born and as stated in Jeremiah 29:11, His thoughts toward us are good and prosperous.
Ephesians 2:10 reads: We are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. The theme of his story is one of love and freedom and great victory. Even more encouraging, his story is based on his kind faithfulness, holy trustworthiness, and unfathomable wisdom and knowledge.
The story that is true for each one of us is that we have a God who created us with tenderness and loves us dearly. A God who longs to see that each one of us comes to accept Him as Savior, submit our lives to Him as Lord, know Him dearly as Father, and experience Him daily as Comforter and Teacher. Regardless of the events that have transpired in your story, the theme of his story remains unchanged.
Maybe your story even influences how you think about God. Do not live in a false story that our enemy, Satan, has deceived you with. Satan is the father of lies and his story about humanity is one of accusation, destruction, despair, and death.
Jesus came to reveal the heart of the Father and to let us in on the story that God has written.
Reach out to someone who loves God and his Word. Journey with someone to come to know the Author of life and what He has to say about you and your life story. There is no neutral ground. We either partner with truth or a lie.
- May we choose to partner and co-author with the One who is true and faithful.Romien Joubert is of the Lighuis Jesus-bediening.
