When We Try to Make Meaning

we trade presence for interpretation more than we realize

Before we dive in, I want to welcome those of you who are new here.

Maybe we recently connected through a conference, a workshop, or one of the free guides I shared. Either way, I’m grateful you found your way here.

This space is less about formulas and quick answers and more about paying attention to what God is revealing through the process of living, creating, and becoming.

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Lately, I’ve been noticing how quickly I try to make meaning out of things.

A moment.
A feeling.
A pattern.

A butterfly crossing my path…
a conversation that feels timely…
a situation that doesn’t make sense…

And before I even realize it,
I’ve already decided what it means.

Not always in a loud or obvious way.

But subtly… quietly…

I assign meaning to what I see
instead of allowing meaning to be revealed.

My pastor shared an example that stuck with me about seeing three red cars and deciding it must mean God is showing you He loves you.

And while that might feel comforting in the moment,
it made me pause and ask:

Am I deriving meaning… or receiving it?

Because there is a difference between:

• assigning meaning

• and allowing meaning to be revealed

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We often want clarity quickly.

So we look for patterns, signs, confirmation.

But sometimes what we’re actually doing is creating a formula.

“If this happens… then it must mean this.”

And formulas feel good— because they give us a sense of control.

But God is not a formula.

He is a God of order. Not confusion. Not randomness. But not something we can reduce to patterns we can predict.

A formula tries to predict outcomes.
Order reveals alignment.

A formula says:
“If I interpret this correctly, I’ll feel secure.”

But order says:
“As I stay grounded in truth, I’ll begin to see how God is working… over time.”

And this desire to understand and create order isn’t limited to the signs we seek or the evidence we look for.

It shows up in something much more ordinary.

The narratives we create.

Every time we find ourselves explaining someone else’s behavior by
filling in the gaps, assigning motives, and drawing conclusions.

We may not realize it, but we’re doing the same thing.

We’re making meaning…instead of allowing it to be made known to us.

Another place I’ve noticed this showing up…

is when things don’t go the way we expected.

When the phones aren’t ringing.
When there’s little to no activity for new patients.
When what we thought would happen… doesn’t.

That’s when the pressure to make meaning feels the strongest.

Because it’s so easy to go here:

Did we hear God wrong?
Are we not supposed to be doing this?
Did we miss something?

And just like that…we’ve taken a moment and assigned it a meaning it was never meant to carry.

Because a slow season…
a quiet stretch…
a lack of visible results…

doesn’t automatically mean we misunderstood God.

But when we’re focused on trying to interpret the meaning of the moment,

we start to draw conclusions
based on what we can see
instead of what we already know to be true.

So how do we sit with this idea of making meaning instead of allowing meaning to be revealed?

For me, it’s my doodle diaries.
(Don’t worry—I won’t show any pictures this time.)

But in the making of the doodles,
I’ve started to notice something:

Meaning isn’t something I force in the moment.
It’s something that reveals itself over time.

Through the process.
Not the outcome.

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And I think that’s true beyond the page.

We don’t always need to rush to explain, define, or decide what something means right away.

Sometimes meaning is formed slowly…
as we stay present,
as we stay grounded,
as we keep showing up.

We don’t create meaning by controlling the story—
we come to recognize it by staying present within it.¹

And this is where I’ve felt it most, the tension between trying to make sense of everything…

and trying not to make sense of anything at all.

I don’t think the goal isn’t to make sense of everything,
but it’s also not to shut meaning down completely.

Somewhere in the middle
there’s a steadiness.

A place where we’re not grasping for meaning…
but we’re not ignoring it either.

The only way to stay in that space without grasping for quick answers is to be anchored in something steady.

Not just what we feel in the moment…
but what we know to be true.

Because our feelings may shift,
our interpretations may change,

but Truth gives us a place to stand
while meaning unfolds.

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I don’t think these aren’t separate struggles after all.
Because the more I focus on trying to understand the meaning of everything…
the more pressure I feel to figure it out.

And it’s not just that we rush to make meaning, but we can be so focused on what something means, that we miss the One who is already present.

We can be so focused on the meaning behind the message,
that we miss the Maker who is right in front of us.

And in doing so…
we trade presence for interpretation.

So, what would it look like to:

Not to stop noticing.
Not to stop wondering.

But to gently shift our focus from trying to interpret every moment…
to staying rooted in the One who gives meaning in the first place.

Because transformation doesn’t happen
when we finally figure everything out.

It happens when we stop striving to interpret…
and start learning to abide.

As I continue shaping my guest post opportunities through the Transformation Series: Live Transformed, Create Transformed, Write Transformed…this is the posture I keep coming back to.

Not making meaning from what we see.
But allowing meaning to be revealed as we stay anchored in truth and open to the process.

The voices you’ll hear in this series won’t be telling you what to take away from their stories.

They won’t give you a formula to follow or a neat conclusion to apply.

Instead, they’ll share what they’ve lived.
What they’ve wrestled through.
How transformation unfolded—often slowly, and rarely predictably.

And the invitation for you isn’t:

“What does this mean for me?”

But:

“What is being revealed to me as I sit with this?”

So, as you read, reflect, and engage in these guest posts²,

I want to leave you with this question:

Am I making meaning out of this…
or is meaning being made known to me?

Reflection Questions:

• Where might I be rushing to assign meaning instead of waiting?

• What am I needing when I look for reassurance or signs?

• What truth do I already know that I can return to today?

• What would it look like to trust God to reveal meaning in His timing?

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What’s Meaningful to Me this Month

…Writing
Still working through revisions of Adeline’s Quest— I would love to wrap up revisions by the end of this month to be able to take the next step.³

…Speaking
Earlier this year I was invited to speak at the Chirstian Women in Media Nashville Luncheon, so I’m working on my message for that later this month. If you’re local, I’d love to see you there, here is the link to register!)

…Reading
TBD… 🤣I did however download Theo of Golden on audible, so I figured maybe at some point I’ll actually get around to listening to it!⁴

…Enjoying
Watching my kids grow up, although it is something I enjoy, it is bittersweet. We are nearing the end of the school year here and I’m trying to soak in every spare moment I have with them!

Many Blessings,

Stephanie

1. this includes the stories we are both writing and living.

2. this series will start later this month. A new post will be published once a month in addition to my monthly newsletter.

3. the next step being writing a proposal and submitting! PSA if anyone happens to have a template for a fiction proposal and would like to share, I would love that! (Bonus if it’s for middle grade or YA!)

4. I have heard nothing but great things about this book, and he is a true Cinderella story of self-published author turned viral— definitely an inspiration!