Everyone Needs to Hear Good News

Last week I had the privilege of sitting down with a new friend and listening as she told me her story.  But the way she told it changed it from being her story to being God’s story – because she recognizes that God is always in the background proactively working in each of our stories.  Hers is a story of chronic and serious health problems from the day she was born that continue today; but her perspective in telling the story is one of God’s sovereignty and grace in her life.

All of us have a story to tell, but do we tell it from God’s perspective or from our own?  If told from our earthly perspective, our stories have the potential to sound self-centered and narrow.  We complain about the negative things that aren’t the way we would like them to be, and we take credit for the positive things that have worked out according to plan.  There is no room for God in the picture because we have completely filled up the frame with ourselves and our feelings.

But the same story told from God’s perspective becomes much more wide open and valuable.  Our story becomes gospel – the good news about God and who he is and what he’s done.  My friend didn’t leave out any of the details of her difficult times; but I never heard any indication of either feeling sorry for herself or praising herself, explicitly or implicitly.  The story was about God.

Our current self-centered culture with instant social media and other aspects doesn’t really help us to choose the gospel way of telling our stories.  Every day we are bombarded with pictures and posts that reek of human pride or wallow in human misery.  We are encouraged to share all of our feelings in the moment rather than to take the time to perhaps correct our thoughts by slowly considering a different perspective.  As a result, the good news about God suffers – even at the hands of well-meaning Christians.

  

Yes, the gospel per se is about the finished work of Christ’s death and resurrection in dealing with the separation from God that sin produces.  But God is active in every part of our lives beyond our salvation story – whether we recognize it or not.  If we want to continue to have a gospel story to tell, it is important for us to seek to look at every part of our lives from God’s perspective instead of our own.  Our salvation story is meaningful to some; but our stories of God’s presence with us for the rest of our lives appeals to just about everyone.  That’s because all humans face similar life circumstances, and showing God’s work through those life stories gives others a picture of what true relationship with God looks like.  God doesn’t just save us from eternal damnation; he saves us from ourselves every single day of our lives!  The first step is recognizing that truth – being humble, transparent, tuned into God.  Then don’t be afraid to tell someone you know who needs to hear a gospel story.