Here's the guest post for February!
Last month, I said that I would like to guest post, trade posts, or host posts(try saying that five times fast) once a month with other bloggers(if you haven't read it, check here!), and I'm excited to have Alannah guest post for the month of February!
She's put together a very thoughtful post On Stories that I enjoyed reading and I'm sure that you will enjoy as well!
Without further ado...
On Stories
From the moment I first learned how to read, I’ve devoured every book that I could get my hands on.
I have so many childhood memories of sitting on my bed, my fingers running along the smooth cover of a brand-new book. I would savor the smell of its pages that were just waiting to be turned. My heart would pound excitedly as I flipped the book open to the beginning, eager to see what story it had to tell.
There’s something special about stories. I’ve loved them since childhood, and I still love them today.
And I think the reason I love stories is because they can move me so deeply. I can connect with these characters as I get a front-row view of their lives playing out. I can experience another world or see this world from a different perspective. I can finish the story having discovered something new.
And every impactful story leaves me changed in some way. It shows me something that cuts straight to my heart. And every impactful story leaves a piece of itself within my soul–a piece that I will carry with me as I continue to live my own life story.
Fiction meeting reality–Made-up stories touching one’s own life story–That’s a powerful thing.
We all have stories, and something about hearing someone else’s story–even if it’s not a real story about a real person–can impact us deeply. As a writer and a reader, I think that’s amazing. There are so many stories to be read and so many stories to be told.
Some stories are more influential than other stories. And yet, I think every story you hear is going to impact you in some way. And that’s why, when it comes to reading a story (or writing one), I like to think of Philippians 4:8:
“Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.”
I want to read (and write) stories that remind me of the truth. Stories that embody what’s just and lovely and pure. Stories full of virtue. Stories that impact me, but impact me for the better.
And I encourage you to do the same, reader.
Read the stories that will leave you feeling more whole. Read the stories that will give you a perspective of hope. And read the stories that, in some way or another, will remind you of Christ.
After all, we’re living in our own life stories. But we’re living in stories that God has written–He’s the Author of our stories. And we’re living in stories that Christ has redeemed–He’s the Savior, the ultimate hero, of our stories.
Let’s let our own life stories be impacted–and even changed–by the stories that reflect this truth.
Alannah Faith is a high school freshman with a passion for running and writing. You can find her at letsrunfree.com.