JOURNEY WITH a GIANT: Drawing Closer to GodNäide

BEAUTY FROM ASHES

Although Fred grew up in a loving family, he had very few friends as a child. Once, a few of his schoolmates chased him home from school and yelled, “Hey, Fat Freddy. We’re going to get you!” Terrified, he ran to a neighbor’s house and banged on the door until she let him in.

Through traumatic experiences like these, Fred absorbed the message that his peers would never look below the surface to see who he really was. He also learned that he couldn’t always express his feelings. As a result, he often went to his piano and let his emotions pour out through his fingers. The hours of piano led to the creation of hundreds of songs that became tools for children to express their feelings and helped change the field of child psychology forever. One could say that Fred’s difficul­ties during childhood helped ignite his life’s passion of loving others not for what they were on the outside but for who they were on the inside.

Perhaps your childhood wasn’t tied with a pretty bow but was in­stead marked by scarring, loss, and pain. Maybe you’ve wondered if you can still make a positive contri­bution if your upbringing looked less like the sweet charm of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood and more like the chaotic mess of The Simpsons. Or you’ve worried that your traumas disqualify you from making a sig­nificant impact. Perhaps you’ve longed to be living someone else’s story or believed that the people who make a real difference can’t possibly have been as messed up as you think you are.

You might be surprised to learn that many of the greatest change makers in history have come from the messiest backgrounds. In many cases, it was the hurdles they overcame that propelled them into leaving behind lasting legacies.

You don’t have to have a perfect upbringing to do something beauti­ful in this world. Like Fred, you may discover that your true calling isn’t found in perfection, but in the beautiful fusion of your triumphs and your trials, the places where your wounds meet your gifts. Just as God used Fred’s pain to fulfill His purpose, He can make “a crown of beauty instead of ashes” (Isaiah 61:3, NIV) in your life, for His power “is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9, NIV).

In what ways have your scars and joys together helped shape your calling?