---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: My story is important not because it is…"
description: "\"My story is important not because it is mine, God knows, but because if I tell it anything like right, the chances are you will recognize that in many ..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c93/frederick-buechner-883_chance_my-story-is-important-not-because-it-is_2809629.jpg"
---

#  My story is important not because it is mine, God knows…

![“My story is important not because it is mine, God knows, but because if I tell it anything like right, the chances are you will recognize that in many ways it is also yours… it is precisely through these stories in all their particularity, as I have long believed and often said, that God makes…” quote by Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c93/frederick-buechner-883_chance_my-story-is-important-not-because-it-is_2809629.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c93/frederick-buechner-883_chance_my-story-is-important-not-because-it-is_2809629.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c93/frederick-buechner-883_chance_my-story-is-important-not-because-it-is_2809629.jpg)

> “My story is important not because it is mine, God knows, but because if I tell it anything like right, the chances are you will recognize that in many ways it is also yours… it is precisely through these stories in all their particularity, as I have long believed and often said, that God makes himself known to each of us more powerfully and personally. If this is true, it means that to lose track of our stories is to be profoundly impoverished not only humanly but also spiritually.”

[Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Personal stories connect us to divine truth, enriching both self and community.

**In simple terms:** Stories link us to God and each other.

Key Takeaway

Share stories to grow spiritually.

Themes

faith storytelling community

Mood

reflective hopeful

Type

spiritual inspirational

When to use this quote

- worship
- counseling
- education

Key Concepts

theology personal narrative

Questions to Reflect On

- What story in your life reflects divine presence?
- How can sharing stories deepen communal faith?

A Different Perspective

Overemphasis on personal narrative may ignore broader doctrine.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Chance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chance/) [God knows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/god-knows/) [Important](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/important/) [Important God](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/important-god-364409/) [Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long/) [Mean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mean/) [Powerfully Personally](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/powerfully-personally-3509790/) [Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Stories Particularity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories-particularity-3509789/) [Story Important](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/story-important/) [Track](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/track/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/)

## Related quotes

> [My story is important not because it is mine, God knows, but because if I tell it anything like right, the chances are you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/my-story-is-important-not-because-it-is-mine-god-knows-but-because-if/)

[Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/)

> [Personally, I think that the story is all-important; everything else comes later. But if there's any other way to ensure the betterment of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rishi-kapoor/personally-i-think-that-the-story-is-all-important-everything-else/)

[Rishi Kapoor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rishi-kapoor/)

> [To make magic credible on screen is always very difficult. The story is the most important thing. That is what should win. If sacrifices…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-copperfield/to-make-magic-credible-on-screen-is-always-very-difficult-the-story/)

[David Copperfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-copperfield/)

> [In some ways, the more that I write songs, the more I feel that telling a story is the most important thing; just being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rostam-batmanglij/in-some-ways-the-more-that-i-write-songs-the-more-i-feel-that-telling/)

[Rostam Batmanglij](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rostam-batmanglij/)

> [Don't give your opinions about Art and the Purpose of Life. They are of little interest and, anyway, you can't express them. Don't analyze…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-waugh/don-t-give-your-opinions-about-art-and-the-purpose-of-life-they-are/)

[Evelyn Waugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-waugh/)

> [I think, for a love story, the most important element is the music, since you don't have action sequences or item numbers. It really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ranbir-kapoor/i-think-for-a-love-story-the-most-important-element-is-the-music/)

[Ranbir Kapoor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ranbir-kapoor/)

> [Every man's story is important, eternal and sacred. That is why every man, as long as he lives and fulfills the will of nature,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/every-man-s-story-is-important-eternal-and-sacred-that-is-why-every/)

[Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/)

> [I never choose films because of its starcast - the director and the story are the most important factors for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amaal-mallik/i-never-choose-films-because-of-its-starcast-the-director-and-the/)

[Amaal Mallik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amaal-mallik/)

> [Walt Disney was a story man, and he knew that we were thinking story. That's why he dug us so much and he hired…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-sherman/walt-disney-was-a-story-man-and-he-knew-that-we-were-thinking-story/)

[Richard M. Sherman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-sherman/)

> [When I approach a story or movie, the story is the most important thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandre-aja/when-i-approach-a-story-or-movie-the-story-is-the-most-important-thing/)

[Alexandre Aja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandre-aja/)

> [It's important to tell your story. It's important to listen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francesca-lia-block/it-s-important-to-tell-your-story-it-s-important-to-listen/)

[Francesca Lia Block](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francesca-lia-block/)

> [With a novel, you have to have a story. It's much more important to have it matter to the reader what happens to people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-barry/with-a-novel-you-have-to-have-a-story-it-s-much-more-important-to/)

[Dave Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-barry/)

> [The story was the important thing and little changes here and there were really part of the story. There were even stories about the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-marmon-silko/the-story-was-the-important-thing-and-little-changes-here-and-there/)

[Leslie Marmon Silko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie-marmon-silko/)

> [Every man is more than just himself; he also represents the unique, the very special and always significant and remarkable point at which the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/every-man-is-more-than-just-himself-he-also-represents-the-unique-the/)

[Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/)

> [If you don't tell your stories, other people will tell their story about you. It's important that we nurture and protect these memories. Things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-louis-gates/if-you-don-t-tell-your-stories-other-people-will-tell-their-story/)

[Henry Louis Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-louis-gates/)

## More by Frederick Buechner

> [In the entire history of the universe, let alone in your own history, there has never been another day just like today, and there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/in-the-entire-history-of-the-universe-let-alone-in-your-own-history/)

[Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/)

> [People are disturbed not by things but by the view they take of them. They may forget what you said, but they will never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/people-are-disturbed-not-by-things-but-by-the-view-they-take-of-them/)

[Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/)

> [It is impossible to conceive how different things would have turned out if that birth had not happened whenever, wherever, however it didfor millions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/it-is-impossible-to-conceive-how-different-things-would-have-turned/)

[Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/)

> [At least to look back over their own lives, as I have looked back over mine, for certain themes and patterns and signals that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/at-least-to-look-back-over-their-own-lives-as-i-have-looked-back-over/)

[Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/)

> [Snobs are people who look down on other people, but that does not justify our looking down on them. Who can say what dark…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/snobs-are-people-who-look-down-on-other-people-but-that-does-not/)

[Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/)

> [I could, of course, have done no more if no less than affiliated myself in one way or another with a particular church, could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/i-could-of-course-have-done-no-more-if-no-less-than-affiliated-myself/)

[Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/)

> [Even the saddest things can become, once we have made peace with them, a source of wisdom and strength.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/even-the-saddest-things-can-become-once-we-have-made-peace-with-them/)

[Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/)

> [A Christian isn't necessarily any nicer than anybody else, just better informed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/a-christian-isn-t-necessarily-any-nicer-than-anybody-else-just-better/)

[Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/)

> [“The things that the world fills time with are enough to turn the heart to stone, but the goodness of time itself is as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/the-things-that-the-world-fills-time-with-are-enough-to-turn-the/)

[Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/)

> [The pride that keeps us from forgiving is the same pride which keeps us from accepting forgiveness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/the-pride-that-keeps-us-from-forgiving-is-the-same-pride-which-keeps/)

[Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/)

> [“You can kiss your family and friends good-bye and put miles between you, but a the same time you carry them with you in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/you-can-kiss-your-family-and-friends-good-bye-and-put-miles-between/)

[Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/)

> [If the truth is worth telling, it is worth making a fool of yourself to tell it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/if-the-truth-is-worth-telling-it-is-worth-making-a-fool-of-yourself/)

[Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/)

> [I suspect that Jesus spoke many of his parables as a kind of sad and holy joke and that that may be part of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/i-suspect-that-jesus-spoke-many-of-his-parables-as-a-kind-of-sad-and/)

[Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/)

> [“How Adewen stuffed her braid in her mouth at that! Or she'd cover her mirth with her hands and shake till you'd think that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/how-adewen-stuffed-her-braid-in-her-mouth-at-that-or-she-d-cover-her/)

[Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/)

> [Resurrection means that the worst thing is never the last thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/resurrection-means-that-the-worst-thing-is-never-the-last-thing/)

[Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/)

[Explore all 339 Frederick Buechner quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/)

## More Chance quotes

> [Before I debuted, it was my goal to make my debut, and afterwards, I aimed at winning champion titles on television music shows, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hyuna/before-i-debuted-it-was-my-goal-to-make-my-debut-and-afterwards-i/)

[Hyuna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hyuna/)

> [I understand it's promotion, but no one ever gave me a chance. No one ever thought I'd be the champ, and look where I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stipe-miocic/i-understand-it-s-promotion-but-no-one-ever-gave-me-a-chance-no-one/)

[Stipe Miocic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stipe-miocic/)

> [I might, by chance, write something just as shoddy; But then I wouldn't show it to everybody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moliere/i-might-by-chance-write-something-just-as-shoddy-but-then-i-wouldn-t/)

[Moliere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moliere/)

> [When I get a chance to play golf or go on a boat with good people, take the boat out and put some lobsters…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-mac/when-i-get-a-chance-to-play-golf-or-go-on-a-boat-with-good-people/)

[Bernie Mac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-mac/)

> [The happy medium is television. And if you find a good suitor, you can do it for years. With movies, you roll the dice.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-campbell/the-happy-medium-is-television-and-if-you-find-a-good-suitor-you-can/)

[Bruce Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-campbell/)

> [I get afraid of the dark if I'm in a great deal of dark, and I have to move around inside of that fear...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-ferris/i-get-afraid-of-the-dark-if-i-m-in-a-great-deal-of-dark-and-i-have-to/)

[Emil Ferris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-ferris/)

> [I have heard that if you pull a bent breath through the second hole of a harmonica tuned to the key of Georgia while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/buddy-wakefield/i-have-heard-that-if-you-pull-a-bent-breath-through-the-second-hole/)

[Buddy Wakefield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/buddy-wakefield/)

> [There are times when we can feel destiny close around us like a fist around a doorknob. Sure, we can resist. But a knob…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/there-are-times-when-we-can-feel-destiny-close-around-us-like-a-fist/)

[Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/)

> [Pain held no terror for him. Pain was, if not friend, then family, something he had grown up with in his crèche, learning to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paolo-bacigalupi/pain-held-no-terror-for-him-pain-was-if-not-friend-then-family/)

[Paolo Bacigalupi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paolo-bacigalupi/)

> [Love changes people, for better or for worse. You could look at it as a chance for you to change. The best kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/love-changes-people-for-better-or-for-worse-you-could-look-at-it-as-a/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“It's not who, it's when”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-taubas/it-s-not-who-it-s-when/)

[Alejandro Taubas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alejandro-taubas/)

> [Childhood is Last Chance Gulch for happiness. After that, you know too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-stoppard/childhood-is-last-chance-gulch-for-happiness-after-that-you-know-too/)

[Tom Stoppard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-stoppard/)

> [I thought my first few jobs would just be off, off, off, off, off broadway. And by chance and how the world works, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tommy-dorfman/i-thought-my-first-few-jobs-would-just-be-off-off-off-off-off/)

[Tommy Dorfman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tommy-dorfman/)

> [If you’re worrying about the past, you’ve got a good chance of screwing up the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-a-tullman/if-you-re-worrying-about-the-past-you-ve-got-a-good-chance-of/)

[Howard A. Tullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-a-tullman/)

> [To be successful, one must take chances.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willie-stargell/to-be-successful-one-must-take-chances/)

[Willie Stargell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willie-stargell/)

[Browse all 12,460 Chance quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chance/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "My story is important not because it is mine, God knows, but because if I tell it anything like right, the chances are you will recognize that in many ways it is also yours… it is precisely through these stories in all their particularity, as I have long believed and often said, that God makes himself known to each of us more powerfully and personally. If this is true, it means that to lose track of our stories is to be profoundly impoverished not only humanly but also spiritually.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Frederick Buechner"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/my-story-is-important-not-because-it-is-mine-god-knows-but-because-if-2/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Chance"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/my-story-is-important-not-because-it-is-mine-god-knows-but-because-if-2/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c93/frederick-buechner-883_chance_my-story-is-important-not-because-it-is_2809629.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c93/frederick-buechner-883_chance_my-story-is-important-not-because-it-is_2809629.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c93/frederick-buechner-883_chance_my-story-is-important-not-because-it-is_2809629.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“My story is important not because it is mine, God knows, but because if I tell it anything like right, the…” — Frederick Buechner",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Frederick Buechner",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "My story is important not because...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/my-story-is-important-not-because-it-is-mine-god-knows-but-because-if-2/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/my-story-is-important-not-because-it-is-mine-god-knows-but-because-if-2/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
