The Impact of Stories
No matter what it is, stories connect us. Sometimes, we may hear a story that makes us think… hmm, I can relate to that. Or, other times, we may believe: That was wild. Finally, we may learn something valuable from a story.
That’s the impact of stories.
In our last blog, I enjoyed hearing stories from our readers that I decided to share.
Here’s one reader’s story.
“When our son was a teenager, a family friend gave him an unauthorized driving lesson to lift his spirits.
Now, mind you, our son was around fourteen years old. We had not discussed driving with him, and he had no learner's permit and had not taken driver's education at school.
The automobile crashed into a tree from our sloped driveway. It could have been much worse. It was by God’s grace neither our son nor our friend sustained any physical injuries.
As Christians, my husband and I forgave our friend because that’s what Christians do. All involved learned a valuable lesson.”
Here’s another story.
“My son and his friend got stranded in San Diego. They called me just as their phones were about to die. Desperately needing to find them shelter, I called a hotel and was at the mercy of the customer service agent at the front desk.
The agent said he couldn’t use my credit card over the phone, and I said, ‘There’s no way I can drive six hours away in time, and my son and his friend would be left on the streets.’ I prayed to God, and miraculously, the hotel person said he would do this one thing only this time. He asked if I could send my ID over so he could print it out from his cell phone.
My son and his friend were able to shelter for one night, glory to the Father, glory to the Son, and glory to the Holy Spirit. However, they needed to take an Uber back home from the train station, which was miles away. I had a critical doctor’s appointment that took me six months to get, and I couldn’t miss it. Even though Uber was very expensive, I arranged for it and told them to repay me by getting their lives together and working for their future.”
Now, I want to share something.
There was an older man I once knew who had sparkly eyes. With a gracious smile, he looked at things positively and shared how he grew up poor. “Being poor taught me to appreciate the things in life,” he said.
This man has since moved on, but he made sure that those around him understood this one phrase coined by Emilie Coue:
“Every day, in every way, I’m getting better and better.”
My reader, keep those stories coming. As always, thanks for your support and feedback.
I appreciate you,
Elvira