REMEMBERING OUT LOUD: A Survivor's Story

Everyone has a story. You...me...everyone. Our lives are our story with each day being a new page. Some pages write themselves, meaning there are days when the people we encounter, where we go, and what transpires, are beyond our control, while other pages, are written by us. We write them based on the choices we make, and our approach and attitude toward our situations and circumstances. But even then, we still have to decide how we will use our story. Will we use it to be better and to help others be better, too? Or will we be victims of our story-victims of pride and arrogance or victims of tragedy and pain? Jennifer Williams Gruener had to make that choice earlier than most. At the age of sixteen, a tornado ripped through her hometown and her life. In a matter of minutes Jennifer and her best friend went from living carefree lives filled with love, laughter, and hope, to being swept up by an F3 tornado. Would subsequent pages tell a story of a survivor who embraced life and lived it to the fullest, or a survivor in name only? Not everyone's storm is in the form of a natural disaster. Not everyone's storm hits suddenly out of nowhere. Not everyone's storm has a chain of events best described as horrendous and heart-wrenching. But everyone's story does come with the need to choose, which is why Jennifer is sharing her story with you. In telling her story, her hope and goal is to help others realize that life is both a gift and a privilege. God wants us to live enthusiastically and with joy, but he also intends for us to be mindful of the responsibility we have to live purposeful lives that make a positive impact for him and on others. So, whatever storms you have faced or find yourself in in the future, know this: you are not alone and there is nothing you cannot overcome if you put your faith and trust in God.