Tricia Goyer - My Life Unscripted. Whos Writing Your Life?

By Tricia Goyer

To Leslie Joy
Yes, Joy is your middle name,
and the life-script youre writing brings
those who know you much joy.
Keep seeking Him.

2007 by Tricia Goyer

All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any meanselectronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, scanning, or otherexcept for brief quotations in critical reviews or articles, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

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Unless otherwise noted, Scripture quotations are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked (AMP) are taken from the Amplified Bible, 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. Scripture quotations marked (THE MESSAGE) are taken from The Message by Eugene H. Peterson. 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked (NKJV) are taken from the New King James Version. 1979, 1980, 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.,Wheaton, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Goyer, Tricia.
My life, unscripted : who's writing your life / by Tricia Goyer.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN-10: 1-4003-1052-0 (trade paper)
ISBN-13: 978-1-4003-1052-4 (trade paper)
1. TeenagersReligious life. 2. Self-actualization (Psychology)Religious aspects
Christianity. I. Title.
BV4531.3.G69 2007
248.8'3dc22

2007013451

Printed in the United States of America
07 08 09 10 11 RRD 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Contents

5. Heros Journey (popularity: getting it,
keeping itfor real)

7. Inner Conflict (insecurity is something
we can battle)

9. Blockbuster Buddies (everyone deserves
a supporting cast)

10. The Hottie (need someone to play the
boyfriend role?)

16. The Action and Adventure Movie (search
for the treasure)

17. The Family Film (wholesome entertainment
... or not!)

18. The Worst Horror Movie Ever (facing
your fears)

Lights, Camera...
Action!
(a note about this book)

My Life, Unscripted may look a little different from other books youve seen. For one, there are actual scripts within the book. Some of them are ones Ive made up. Others are true scenes from my life that Ive written out in script form.

Ive tried to make these scripts as real-to-life as possible. Ive designed these to look like they would if they were in the hands of a director.

In writing these scripts, Ive used the same terminology as a scriptwriter. Here are a few terms you might come across:

TERMS

Establishing: (Establishing shot) An image or shot that indicates the location of the scene and/or story.

Ext.: (Exterior) Used in the scene heading, this indicates that the scene is taking place outdoors.

Fade In: (Fade from black) When an image slowly appears from black. This is typically used at the beginning of a film. Sometimes it is used between scenes to show time passing between points in the story.

Fade Out: (Fade to black) When an image slowly disappears into black. This is typically used at the end of a scene.

Int.: (Interior) Used in the scene heading, this indicates that the scene is taking place indoors.

CAPS: You will also note that certain words are in all CAPS.
This is not a mistake!

In the beginning of each section, each NEW PERSON OR GROUP OF PEOPLE will be in ALL CAPS. This is a cue for the casting director. It tells him the number of people he will need to cast.

Also, each SOUND is in ALL CAPS. This helps the soundman to know which sounds will be needed for the scene.

Pretty interesting stuff, isnt it?

And for my own personal touch, youll see that the Scriptures are in the same font as the scripts... because here in the real world, these Scriptures should be the script for our lives.

1.
Not TV Land
(the real deal)

If you were to come across the script for a new (and just a bit cheesy) teen movie, the script might be written something like this:

FADE IN:

EXT. HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL GAMENIGHTESTABLISHING

Stadium stands filled with CHEERING FANS.SCHOOL BAND plays SCHOOL SONG as FOOTBALL PLAYERS run onto field.

INT. CAR IN PARKING LOTNIGHT

Soda cans and fast-food wrappers littering the floor are KICKED aside by trendy shoes belonging to MEGAN JOHNSON, 16. Light from the stadium filters through the back window over the muscled, tan body of CHRIS COOPER. He brushes Megans hair from her cheek and turns Megans face toward him.

CHRIS
You dont have to be shy, Meg. Weve been talking about this all week.

MEGAN (wryly)
Talked about the football game, yes. I thought we were actually going to watch the game.

CHRIS (chuckling)
And why would I do that when I have the most beautiful girl in school right here? Besides, I dont even like sports.

Megan OPENS DOOR and climbs from car.

MEGAN
Chris, I came to watch the game, not fend off your plays.

Megan slips her purse over her shoulder and steps back from the car. She SLAMS the door shut. Chris LOWERS THE AUTOMATIC WINDOW.

CHRIS (stuttering)
But I thought...

MEGAN
I know exactly what you thought. Sorry, Chris, no touchdown tonight.

Chris STARTS THE ENGINE.

CHRIS
Yeah, well, youre not the only girl in this school....

Megan watches Chris drive away.

MEGAN
I know. But I am the only one who has to live with the consequences....

FADE OUT

A TYPICAL MOVIE?

Now that would make a typical movie, right? Wed watch as Meg goes to the football game shaken, but proud to have dumped the creep. If it were a great movie, Meg would meet a cute guy sitting in the bleachers. Of course, then there would be some conflict that keeps them apart. Maybe hes rich, and shes poor. Maybe hes a rich prince from Denmark! Oh wait, thats been done. Maybe his parents have big plans for him, which dont include her. Maybe hers are shipping Meg to boarding school.

But no matter the conflict, in the end they confess their love. And though the movie only ends with a kiss, we know their happiness lasts forever.

Ahhh...

Unfortunately, the script of my life went a little more like this:

FADE IN:

EXT. FAMILY SEDAN DRIVING DOWN ROAD IN
SMALL TOWNAFTERNOONESTABLISHING
INT. CAR CARRIES MOM AND DAUGHTERAFTERNOON

Tears run down MOMS face. Her jaw is clenched tight. In the passenger seat, TRISH VALLEY, 17, slumps lower into the seat. She wipes away her own tears and wraps her arms around her waist almost instinctively. Her eyes widen as a car passes. Driving the beat-up Ford is a teen boy. A PRETTY GIRL rides with CHASE, 16, curled to his side. Trish sits straight and points to the car.