WHAT IF... I Changed My Storyline?

Early last month I began this What If writing series. I have focused on asking What If questions about traditional beliefs within the Christian culture. Imagine my delight when I came up Portland author Donald Miller's blog who wrote a post titled, "The What If Challenge."   He even used the same What If graphic I did.

Here's a bit of what his What If is about:

So a few weeks ago, I wrote a post about the most powerful question you can ask: What if? The response was overwhelming. Comments flooded in that were both heartbreaking and inspirational. I’m guessing the post got a lot of people dreaming about the possibilities in life.

So here’s a challenge. What if we followed through on some of our what if questions?
In short, the blog post said storytellers, when they’re writing their stories, often ask the question what if to keep the story going. What if my protagonist falls in love, or quits their job, or adopts a kid? And those same kinds of questions can radically change a story in a persons actual life, too. But the only way the question can actually have power is if you follow through.

I love the direction that Don's What If question travels. I chose to use this powerful question as a trailhead to exploring ideas beyond the borders of Christian traditionalism;  he uses it to inspire his readers to explore their own imaginations, and in doing so, perhaps find a new story within themselves about themselves.  

Reading his post about the What If's of my own life is perfect timing. There has been a whole lot of What If'ing going on in my life lately.  Here's the comment I left at his post:

What if at age 45 a cleaning woman with no formal education applied to Marylhurst University? What if she got accepted? What if she did get the funding to go for it and what if she actually got that degree in religion and communications? What if that education helped her to become the most effective communicator she could be? And what if she shared that power of communication for the sake of others? 

Yes, this is what I did last month when I asked myself the question, "What if I just go ahead and apply and see what happens?"
Another big What If in my life I want to tell you about is this:   What if someone invited me to go to Cambodia in order to help write up stories about their ministry there?  What if I said yes and what if that trip is scheduled for next month?  What if I went and listened to the stories, then wrote the stories and told the stories?  What if I did that? Me, an ordinary cleaning woman by trade who lives a simple kind of life?

It's happening. I am going to Cambodia in about six weeks!  Here's part of the story of how this came up on my life's storyline:

A friend from my days of working with Vietnamese refugees in Hong Kong back in the 80's has popped back into my life. Her name is Joni. She has been teaching and training Vietnamese people for more than twenty years in areas of education and church formation.

Joni has been living in Viet Nam and Cambodia for the last twenty years.She likes my writing so I will be going there to help her as a writer and storyteller. She'll show me up-close the Vietnamese kids and families her grassroots non-profit is serving ; she'll take me to some villages outside the city, including Svay Pak, a village made notorious by MSNBC's program, To Catch a Predator, where children are sexually exploited for international pedophiles. What's under reported, however, is that many of the kids trafficked are Vietnamese.

Joni will also be taking me to Saigon in south Viet Nam,which is a 6-hour bus journey from Phnom Penh.

It will be a fascinating and heartbreaking trip, I'm sure. But I need help to get there! 

It will take more than $1,000 for me to go to Cambodia. I am planning to stay about two weeks. I started fundraising last week (something I have not done since my twenties!!) and I have been staggered by the generosity of friends who have been giving towards my trip.  If you are interested in knowing more about my trip and how you can help get me there, click HERE for an online version of my recent appeal letter which includes links of how to donate through the internet. 

So there it is, me asking the question What If about my own storyline.  What if I didn't? What if I listened to that voice that challenges me saying  things like What business does a woman your age have applying to a university like Marylhurst?  What do you think you're doing?  Why on earth would you spend so much effort and money to go to Cambodia when you don't even have any credentials?  Who's going to read what you write anyway? 

Well what if I don't listen to that voice of anxiety and instead let courage and wisdom speak to me from somewhere inside where God is hiding? What if I did that?  What if you did?  What would be your What if storyline?

I'd really like to know.