Sandwich At Ike's Place

Wow. Almost let today slip by without posting. It’s just been one of those weeks!

I spent the day yesterday traveling to San Francisco to take my daughter to a specialist. We stopped at a great little deli on 16th Street called Ike’s Place. (That's their sandwich photo to the left.) They have about a thousand sandwich combos to choose from. Okay, maybe not a thousand, but a lot. And with really interesting names that all sound like they could have stories behind them.

I love stories. True stories. As my daughter, her boyfriend, and I sat there at a small table on the sidewalk, I did a little people watching. I promise I didn’t gawk. But as I glanced around, I wondered about the stories behind the others sharing the sidewalk and eating their sandwiches in front of Ike’s.

I’ve been thinking a lot about stories lately—especially as I revisit those I told in my books. I was just rereading one today while working on a study resource to go with the series. In my reflective mood I thought about stories generally—other real ones, like mine and like yours.

• Our personal stories are always dynamic, always going somewhere.


• One day of our story has context—huge context. Though we live the day in the present, it is unmistakably part of a past and a future. (And one beyond our imagining--Psalm 139, Jeremiah 29:11, Ephesians 3:20.)


• As much as our life sometimes seems entirely out of our control, it can be in God’s loving and capable hands.


• Our stories, however, are also made up of the many choices we make.


• And we can choose to live free--John 8:36!
  

Simple statements not earthshakingly deep, but with some chewing you might find a few unique and personal layers meaningful particularly to you.

(Tempting, but I won't get corny and try to relate that to a sandwich.)

Anyway, how’s your story going these days?

Jan
author of the Live Free series, Standard Publishing

true stories, true hope

for teens, young adults,
and those who care about them.