When I was your age, the classic story goes, I had to walk uphill both ways in the snow to get to school. If I did my chores all week, I could spend a nickel at the candy counter.
Folks who grew up in tougher times like to remind the softer generation how they have a relatively easy life. Especially if they’ve been through hardships like war, there’s this temptation to wax eloquent about how tough things were back then.
Those who have been through the Depression or World War II certainly have a tale worth telling, and those of us who are younger can gain an appreciation for the creature comforts and freedoms we enjoy by hearing such stories.
Truth is, everyone has a story, and every human story has common elements: Suffering and joy. Hardship and triumph. Sacrifice and reward. Pain and sweetness.
No one gets to pick what era they are born, or where – but we all have a choice as to the kind of story we tell.
Any of one us can make the mistake of telling a story just for the sake of the story. We can focus on the dramatic elements, the things that are interesting to others.
That’s all well and good, but if our focus is merely, My life has been hard, we miss the point of our story and our reason for sharing it.
In other words, if we fail to understand the difference between a story and a testimony, we fail to understand the power of our own story.
Corrie Ten Boom was imprisoned during World War II for the atrocious crime of harboring Jewish people in her home in an effort to save their lives. She tells her story in The Hiding Place.
Corrie suffered much at the hands of her Nazi tormentors. Her sister died while in the concentration camp with her.
Corrie is frank about the hardships she endured – but she knows the hardships are ultimately not the point. Instead, Corrie points to something – someone – behind the scenes.
She points to Jesus, who sustained and protected her. Jesus, who even helped her forgive her enemies.
Corrie knew her story was not all about difficulty. It was all about Jesus. And there you have it – the difference between a story and a testimony.
A story tells what happened. A testimony glorifies the God behind the story.
Lice infested the barracks where Corrie and the other prisoners slept. That’s a hardship. Because of the lice, however, the guards avoided the female prisoners and didn’t take advantage of them.
Corrie saw God’s protection behind the scenes.
The apostle Paul writes:
“We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead.” –2 Corinthians 8b-9
What conviction these words bring! I want this outlook. I want a willingness to endure all things with hope and joy, pointing to my beautiful Savior.
When I talk about my life, I don’t just want to dramatize and impress others. I want to give glory to God for all he has done in and through my life.
In the end, my story and your story are really not our stories. We are merely extras, bit players in a grand meta-narrative, the main character of which is Jesus.
May his name be made famous as we testify to his goodness and grace.
