What Story Is Your Life Telling
Austrian philosopher Ivan Illich said this about stories: "Neither revolution nor reformation can ultimately change a society, rather you must tell a new powerful tale, one so persuasive that it sweeps away the old myths and becomes the preferred story.
One so inclusive that it gathers all the bits of our past and our present into a coherent whole, one that even shines some light into our future so that we can take the next step … If you want to change a society, then you have to tell an alternative story."
1. Life is What You Make It
Your life is a story. My life is a story. What we do, how we do it, what we say, how we act, how we respond to good and bad situations in life, and how we treat people make up the various parts of our story. Like a story, our lives have a beginning, a middle, and an end, in which we are allotted a certain amount of time to do what we were made to do. In essence, we enter the stage of life, we do our act, and we make our exit. If our act is good, people will want to see it again and again. If, our act is bad, however, we will be judged by the critical voices of mankind.
2. Life is Creating OurSelves
What we do in our lives makes up the words, the chapters, the characters, the plot of our life story. Our individual life stories will probably not be read in our lifetime. If it is, it will be read in bits and pieces, highs and lows. Our whole story will be left behind and read by those who are traveling along the common road called life. Life on this earth will not be lived here forever, therefore, it is up to each of us to live a life that is worthy of someone reading and learning from our story.
3. Best kind of Life to Live
If we wish to leave behind a good story for all people to read, enjoy, and be inspired by, we must strive to lead a good, wholesome, productive life of service. A good story is an exciting story, one that teaches a lesson, one that is inspiring, motivating, and encouraging. It not only tells, but it also shows. It challenges and pushes to bring out the best of all who read it. A life lived in love and humble service to God and to others is the best kind of life to live.
4. Lead a Good Life
What is it to live a life that is characterized by how much money you made, what kind of house you lived in, and where you were able to travel? All those things are good and wonderful and we should be thankful if we are able to have and do such things. We don't want to leave behind a story of mere existence, but of living, really living --- living until all you do matters and all you did counts, persevering through the bad times, celebrating the good times, pouring all of your energy into being the best and bringing out the best in others.
How you live your life is your story to the world. You are the writer. Make your story worth reading.
