The Power of Voice

The importance of your story...

When meeting people, we often tell them a story from our past or details about our present such as where we live or what we do. What about the future? Do we ever share our hopes for the future with the people we meet? Sometimes we do and sometimes we don’t. Why?

Perhaps we shy away from talking about future hopes for numerous reasons; maybe doubt it won’t happen, fear that we will sound foolish or prideful, worry about what other people will think or say… Yet, each time we minimize the importance of the hopes and dreams living inside of us, we let a piece of us die. Yes, I am proposing that NOT sharing the hope that lives inside of us KILLS the future. Each time I minimize the dreams and desires God has put upon my heart, I effectively make it more impossible for the dreams to happen…mostly because I forget.

Jesus shows us the importance of story. When He was born, people spoke about His future: His Aunt Elizabeth, His mother Mary, Simeon a priest, and Anna a prophetess (see Luke 1 and 2). They spoke boldly about His future as the Redeemer of Israel. They spoke out what God put on their hearts for the future about this boy. What were they proclaiming? His mission; His mission to “preach good news to the poor, bind up the brokenhearted, proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to the proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, and to provide for those who grieve – to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair” (Isaiah 61:1-3). His future was the hope of Israel (and the world).

This is where the promise of story comes in! After Jesus’ death and resurrection (which many of the disciples did not believe because women came to tell them Jesus had risen), two of His disciples were walking on a road and they ran into Jesus yet didn’t recognize Him. In fact, they responded to Jesus and said, “We had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel” (Luke 24:21, emphasis added). Hang on a minute! It has already been proclaimed that Jesus is the hope of Israel (and the world). Of all people, His disciples should know who He is…but they don’t. WHY? They forgot what had already been proclaimed! They let the enemy steal their hope in Jesus and therefore the future.

This is why I proclaim that there is power in your story, power in what God has told you and promised you, power in the dreams of your heart because He has given you those dreams! Please share your story with the world!