Charlie Paparelli inspired this post; he writes an\ninteresting blog. The one today talked about the impact storytelling has on\nconveying information. People understand stories and can remember them. I\nbelieve that is why Jesus told so many parables. People could relate to the\nstory, and the sequence was easy to remember and retell.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Our legacy, yours and mine, is not in what we accumulate or our accomplishments. Our legacy is the lives we touch. The moments that can not be replaced with words. There is an image I always get when I think of great stories. It is the image of an emotional tsunami that washes over me in a towering wave that takes my breath away. It is that moment when my brain turns off because of the emotional crescendo; I forget to breathe \u2014 a cacophony of visceral chemical reactions and uncontrolled emotions. Man, I hate those moments. I\u2019m a guy who likes to be in control of his feelings. It is in the man by-laws. Those moments sweep over me, high jacking my consciousness. They leave me in awe and wonder. They leave me with a sense of joy and fear. Fear that it may never come again. That I will never feel this incredible depth of wonder again; it is a place I want to reside in forever\u2026. It is a piece of Heaven on Earth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Have I lived a life that warrants such emotion? I don\u2019t know; my life is my life. It is the only life I know. My shortcomings are not monumental; they\u2019re ordinary, everyday, human frailty. I have always thought of myself, with pride I might add, as the common man. It is what I have aspired to be. A rock, not impressive, but dependable. So, do I have a story worthy of taking your breath away?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Stories have antagonists and protagonists; they have a plot\nthat builds to an impossible situation, and then the climax, a bigger than\nlife, overcoming all odds rescue. Tears and joy and laughter follow the rescue.\nThe great story – The great ending<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In my story, the antagonist is me, not the protagonist; you\nknow the one who sweeps in and saves the day. I\u2019m the one who needs saving\nbecause of my dastardly ways. I\u2019m the Snidely Whiplash in this Dudley Do-right\nstory. The protagonist is Christ; the\nplot is life, and the climax is the cross. The bigger than life, overcoming all\nodds rescue. It takes my breath away and leaves me in awe. I do have a story;\nit is the story of unspeakable betrayal. It is a story of unfathomable love. It\nis the story of greatness unearned but generously given. It is the love story\nthat transcends all time and space. It is the ultimate happy ending. It is the\nstory that lives in all of us. We have to recognize it and tell it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I am not just part of a more significant story. I\u2019m not a\nwalk-on or bit player who shows up on filming day in answer to a casting call.\nI\u2019m not here to fill in the background to make the story more \u201creal.\u201d I have a\nspecific role with a unique script and a story to tell. God sees me center\nstage, in bright lights, the only character on stage. My story is unique,\ncompelling, and captivating. It is the story of redemption.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I\u2019m George Baily in a Wonderful Life; I\u2019m Jean Valjean in Les Mis\u00e9rables. I am Peter. I am Paul. I am every man that ever fell and was lifted back up by Christ\u2019s love. It is mine, and it\u2019s worth telling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Psalm 78:4<\/strong> \u201cWe will not hide them from their\nchildren, but tell to the coming generation the glorious deeds of the Lord, and\nhis might, and the wonders that he has done.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" We all have a great story in us. We just need to find it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[8,6],"tags":[12],"class_list":["post-293","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-motivation","category-purpose","tag-christian"],"yoast_head":"\n