This post will wrap up my story moment. I hope you’ll use the 4-3-2-1 story moment method with a small group or trusted friends. The beauty of the story moment is that people get to discover who we really are and not the projected image we might present. Their acceptance and love comes to me rather than to the image I create of myself.
Core Belief: Grace Wins
The Matthew West song, Grace Wins sums it up so beautifully. Grace is defined as unmerited favor. For some reason this core belief is hard for me to live with. I always want to return to legalism because it makes sense. Legalism is easy because someone has to pay for the wrong done. Grace, on the other hand, is difficult for people to grasp. Grace says Jesus paid for the wrong that has been done. In legalism the math is simple, two plus two equals four. If you do this wrong you get this punishment. If you do this correct you gain this favor. Makes sense, right?
Grace says two plus two equals seven. See what I did there? The number seven in biblical numerology means completion or perfection. The entire Bible points to God’s amazing mercy and grace. One of my favorite phrases is “If we cover our sin, God exposes it. If we expose our sin, God covers it.”
Grace allows me to be Christ in David Waddell. Grace allows God to look at me and see Jesus while looking at Jesus and seeing my sin debt paid in full.
Grace always wins.
Core Belief: Life Needs More Laughter
It has been proven that laughter serves both a medicinal and a cathartic purpose. (Proverbs 17:22) Even if it doesn’t add years to our life, it will add life to our years! Plus, it’s just good fun. I have noticed, with my tendency toward sarcasm, that if the humor is pointed at a person then it’s not funny unless that person is truly laughing as well.
I look for laughter in the crazy things I end up doing in life. I look for laughter in the way a child’s mind operates. I look for laughter in dealing with puppy dogs and their goofy personalities. I look for humor in the memories of loved ones that have already left this world. I look for the humor in the most serious moments life offers. This core belief drives me to the point that I try to provide as much laughter to the world as possible. Even if it’s at my own expense.
Life is too short to deny oneself from laughter.
Story Bored: One Wound – Ridicule and Rejection
I grew up always being short, thin, and uncoordinated. The other guys may be bigger, but I was slower. The lack of athleticism and coordination opened me up for a great deal of ridicule. I was also have a condition known as Charceau Marie Tooth (CMT) disease which caused deformity in my feet. This opened up a great deal of teasing whenever I went swimming or the event called for bare feet. Puberty was a late visitor in my life, which caused a great deal of bullying and teasing up through my freshman year of high school.
One of the things I’ve noticed as I look back at the ridicule I received is that most of it was over things in which I had no control over. It was out of this ridicule I developed a very sharp sense of sarcasm and mean humor. The ability and gift God gave me in humor and words that was meant to encourage and build others up was used instead as a defense mechanism to fight back. I found that sticks and stones might break bones, but that words actually broke hearts and spirits.
In time and maturity God has used the ridicule to give me a heart for the underdog. Because of the pain I experienced in being the object of the joke I have learned to protect those that might find themselves in the same place. I tend to watch out for the underdog and encourage them in what God has in store for them. The ability to use words to hurt others has been turned into words that encourage others and build them up.
I also have dealt with a good bit of rejection in my life. I had dreams of a career in sports but the lack of talent and size always seemed to get in the way. I was usually the last one chosen when teams were picked for neighborhood sports. When I played baseball I was generally put in right field, which is usually reserved for the least talented players.
Rejection has also taken place in my attempts at romance. I asked three girls to attend freshman homecoming with me, with one girl using the “have to wash my hair” excuse to avoid the possible date. I asked four girls to senior prom with a rejection from each. Finally the first one I asked approached me about going since the guy she was hoping would ask her did not. Even to this day I get some of the most polite rejections from ladies known to man. I have been told they didn’t feel like they should be dating, an old boyfriend is back in the picture, we live too far away from each other, or they just too busy to work me into their schedule. The best rejection I’ve received are the ladies, when approached about a date, respond by attempting to set me up with someone else. This happens more often than one would think!
I’ve also dealt with a good bit of rejection in looking for jobs. All throughout my career I have dreamed of jobs I’ve applied for only to be told I’m not the direction they wish to go. Some have not even given me the pleasure of dealing with rejection as they don’t even respond following an interview.
The point of sharing of a wound is not to express the difficulty in life, but rather to demonstrate how God is healing the wound and the miraculous way He has used the wound to make me into the person He designed. As with all wounds, scars are left. The scars, however, are a step toward healing. The rejection scars have taught me my faith and trust needs to be in Christ and not in other people or career paths.
I eventually look back on the storyboard of my life and give thanks to God for the rejections I have received. The rejections have been part of His storyboard of my life. Every story has to contain the good, the bad, and the ugly (cue the movie’s music in your head). The career paths would not have brought me to this place in my life with a job I enjoy so much. Some of the women I dreamed of being with would have been struggles in the long run. When I perform marriage ceremonies I even point out that a lifetime of rejection has led to the point where these two people have finally found each other. I also realize I have rejected certain job offers and potential relationships in my life, so I have inflicted the wounds as much as I have received them.
There’s a reason some aspects of life don’t work. It’s because they’re not supposed to. God remains sovereign. In fact, God has wound the most wonderful bandage around my wound in laying out my storyboard where even my sin and stupidity have played a part in His overall plan in my life. I constantly remind myself that my life is in better shape in God’s hands than in my own. God’s timing is always right. He does know what He’s doing!
Story Bored: One Goal – Keep Writing
I have found something very fulfilling in writing. I enjoy doing it, even when ideas hit in the middle of the night and I can’t go back to sleep. I enjoy the inspiration and encouragement my writing might give to others as they struggle in their lives and faith. So my goal is to finish the third book I’m currently working on and get it published. A further goal is to begin the fourth and continue to write as long as inspirational ideas flow in this head of mine.
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Thank you for riding along with me as I have been writing a long story on this storyboard moment. I look forward to hearing from any of you that wish to share your story with me. You may write to me at charactersofthebible@gmail.com or send a private message on the Characters of the Bible Facebook page.