Based on a True Story

Good day! Good evening :) 

Good...Whenever this post pops up across your VERY OWN screen :)

For the longest time I thought it would just be a pretty ideal life to be a movie star/actor.  I mean who wouldn't want to consistently be delving into new characters, taking on new personalities, creating life to words on paper, wearing extravagant new costumes at every waking corner, and taking the mike and holding it captive.. ok so maybe you don't want that, but to me it sounds super-duper exciting!  The glitz and the glam, the divas and the hot rods, the feather bow-ahs and the photographs, the champaign and the adoring fans calling for YOU- YOU - AND YOU! …..wow….. (smiles and sighs.. :)

But then it kinda dawned on me the other day… 

Have you ever seen a movie that was based on a true story? Lets just say Facing the Giants, Cinderella Man, or We Are Marshall- (all great!)  I mean I'm not exactly what you would call "a champion" when it comes to boxing, football, or baseball, but I CRAVE to be apart of a story so moving that someone else wants to make a movie about it! Forget about acting for second and think about it.  I want to be that person the actor is trying to recreate on the screen.  If that means trading in the red dress and the red carpet for a different direction that my God desires of me, well then I am pumped!  And even if my LIFE STORY doesn't make it onto the big screen, I want to have lived a life that was fulfilling and meaningful- a life where my Identity was completely in Christ.

*Sidenote: I actually have a small role in our school play, so I am totally not trying to make acting look and sound horrible.  I just have found a great appreciation for the flip side- for not just recreating the story, but creating it in the first place.  

Anyway- this weekend my church and several others participated in DNow.  If you were to pop into a scene of my weekend- you would probably would have glimpsed a bunch of girls,  a bunch of oreos, chips, and brownies, laughter that warms the heart, and honestly just some good conversation going on with a couple really awesome group leaders.  The theme of this week was finding your true identity.  So, Where is Your True Identity Found??…. and now all of our hands can shoot up, and our inner first grade selves can yell JESUS! You just won a gold star! Ok, :) But really, so many times I place my value and identity on top of all the mistakes I make.  (Like a test- After making that ONE mistake, you loose all hope of getting that 100.)  But I shouldn't do that.  Christ is MY 100 :) My identity is not found in how I look, what I wear, what I eat, what my weight is, what others think about me, how many "fantastic" pictures I can try and pose for, how many compliments, how many interesting blog posts I can try to pump out for you guys- my identity is  N-O-T FOUND in those things.   Believe it or not we can get oh so wrapped up in our selves, and what others think -that life becomes frustrating, worrisome, and the joy slowly but surely leeks it way out of that bright and shining day.  When I remember that no matter what- My identity is in Christ and not in what others think about me(which I fall captive too much too often!)- my outlook on life becomes SO MUCH BETTER!  I mean WHATDOYAKNOW… We might actually have time to think of others?!  

So maybe you'll end up on the big screen someday, or your story will, or maybe neither- that's ok! at the end of the day though, let us all live life to the fullest knowing that Our Identity and Our Joy is in Christ :) So live it up and create your own personal story that God has designed for you :)… It's gonna take some pretty hard work and praying, but it's gonna be worth it in the end when we lay our crowns at the feet of God.  

So, lots and lots of love!

AC