Excellent Endings

Sunday Teaching

Dec 27

The full video of this teaching is available at the bottom of this post and this link.

HOW STORIES END

There are over 20 different ways a movie can end—happily, tragically, bittersweetly, with a twist, a cliffhanger, or even an anti-climactic shrug. Some endings make us cheer; others leave us heartbroken or scratching our heads. But let’s be honest, we all have our favorites. So, which movie ending do you enjoy the most?

Last week, I took a quick Social Media survey and asked people to choose between four common endings. Here’s how they voted:

The Happy Ending: 29%
The Bad Guy Wins: 5%
The Cliffhanger: 12%
The Redemptive Ending: 54%

The results weren’t surprising: 83% of us prefer stories that end in joy and redemption. Because, deep down, don’t we all want to believe that even in the chaos—even when things fall apart—hope survives? That the story doesn’t just end—it ends well.

This year, you will find yourself in dozens upon dozens of stories. And while you can’t always control how those stories unfold, you can choose how you participate in them. What if how you live, act, and respond could help guide these stories toward Excellent Endings?

NOT ALL STORIES HAVE HAPPY ENDINGS

Stories don’t have to have happy or redemptive endings to be Excellent Endings. An excellent ending is sometimes about faithfulness in the face of tragedy or courage when the outcome seems hopeless. It’s about making choices that reflect God’s character, even when the story doesn’t resolve how we’d hoped.

Look at Esther. A young queen caught in a story far bigger than herself. She couldn’t control the danger her people faced—a decree from King Xerxes, orchestrated by Haman, that ordered the annihilation of all Jews (Esther 3:10-13). But Esther made a choice. She stepped up, risked her life, and used her voice to save her people. “If I perish, I perish,” she said (Esther 4:16, Redemptive Ending). And because of her courage, the story didn’t just resolve—it delivered hope for future generations.

Then there’s Stephen. A guy full of courage, preaching boldly, and then—stoned to death. That’s how his story ends. Tragic, right? But even as the stones were flying, Stephen made a choice. He prayed for his executioners: “Lord, do not hold this sin against them” (Acts 7:54-60, Bittersweet Ending). That’s what he did with his ending. And that choice—the choice to forgive—still echoes. It gave the early church a shot of courage and reminds us that, even in the middle of being murdered with rocks, he still wrote an Excellent ending.

Or take John the Baptist. He’s the guy who prepared the way for Jesus, called people to repentance and pointed everyone to the Messiah. And how does his story end? In a dark prison cell, beheaded because of a spineless king and a ridiculous promise (Mark 6:14-29, Tragic Ending). But John’s faithfulness wasn’t wasted. His life mattered because he chose to play his part, even when the ending wasn’t what he had hoped.

And then there’s David, grieving the death of his son Absalom, who had tried to overthrow him. But, when the news of Absalom’s death came, David’s cry was real: “O my son Absalom! If only I had died in your place!” (2 Samuel 18:33, Poetic Justice and Tragic Ending). David’s love didn’t erase the pain. Still, it shows us that even in the most fractured relationships, we can choose grace and compassion even when the ending hurts.

ENDINGS MATTER

The way stories end matters. Endings shape how we remember the journey, affect how we process the pain and influence how we carry hope into the dozens of stories we're living all at once. Most of these stories don't wrap up neatly. More often than not, they leave us with unmet expectations and unanswered questions. And those are the hardest, aren't they? The ones where we're left crying, this can't be how this ends!

Even in those stories, there can be Excellent Endings! That's what this four-week series is about. Even when life gives you some stories that end in heartbreak, grief, or disappointment, God can still turn it into an excellent ending!

God has a way of stepping into our unfinished stories. He meets us right there in the middle of the mess, bringing hope where none seems possible, planting seeds of redemption in barren places. Sometimes, those seeds grow into endings we never could have imagined. Endings that remind us God is still writing, even when we think the story is over.

As a pastor, I've sat with countless people in those moments where it seems like the story is stuck in the darkest chapter, and there's no turning the page. That brings us to Kayla’s story.

KAYLA’S STORY IN HER WORDS

“Christmas last year was extremely painful, without much hope. A lot of things in my life: relationships, dreams of my future, and life as I knew it, were quickly vanishing and dying. I felt like I was drowning and being forced to choose a life I never wanted. It all felt so unfair. My marriage was in a situation I didn’t ask for and never imagined I would ever face.

In the early years of our marriage, there were moments that felt off; I could never quite put my finger on why. Those moments when his anger over something trivial was so out of proportion to what had happened. Times when I caught him in a little lie—lies that made no sense, like he was hiding something that didn’t need hiding. I knew he drank socially now and then, but then there were those times when I smelled alcohol on his breath and he swore it was from cough medicine or a throat lozenge because he hadn’t been feeling well. These moments added up slowly, but I brushed them off, telling myself it was all just part of adjusting to marriage and learning how to raise a family. I had no experience with alcoholism, no frame of reference for what I was seeing. My optimism and hope convinced me this was temporary, something that would soon pass.

Well, it didn’t pass. I didn’t know my husband was an alcoholic. I didn’t know his alcoholism had caused him to spiral into depression. Married life in a small house with young kids is hard enough. But when the foundation of your marriage is mixed with addiction, it’s like building your house on sand—unstable, shifting, and destined to collapse. Ours was crumbling, and it was beyond my control to fix it.

Things became progressively worse through 2023. Kyle was dealing with alcoholism and depression. In the spring, we suffered a heartbreaking miscarriage. Our situation continued to deteriorate throughout the summer, with Kyle occasionally disappearing for extended periods of time, skipping family events, arguments escalating, and his involvement in our lives dwindling to almost nothing—except for providing financial support.

I gave an ultimatum, and Kyle went to a rehab center for a month. When he came back, I thought we had turned a corner. I allowed myself to hope—maybe, just maybe, this was the start of a new chapter. But then, the very next week, he relapsed. The shock hit me like a punch to the gut. I couldn’t believe it. After all that time, effort, and money, after the promises and the hope, he went right back to drinking. From there, everything spiraled further out of control, and I reached the point where I had taken all I could bear.

Six weeks earlier, I had given him an ultimatum, but he broke it. I moved back into my mom and dad’s house with the kids, hoping to give them some stability and to make Kyle see what he was losing—his family.

By April of 2024, I had made the decision to get a divorce. It was never what I wanted, especially for my children, but I felt it was the only way. I told my family, my friends, and, most importantly, Kyle: I was filing for divorce.

I was ready to move on, certain that the chapter with Kyle was coming to a close. But life has a way of surprising you, especially when God is involved.

Kyle decided to go on a men’s retreat with a church we knew from my time working in Pataskala. One afternoon, he called me from the retreat and said, “Guess what! I got baptized.”

I congratulated him and hung up the phone. But I’ll never forget how I felt after that. I could sense the Holy Spirit saying, “Just hang on. Don’t move forward with the divorce. Just hang on a little bit and wait.” And I was like, “Well, crap.” I had felt so settled and confident in my decision that I was frustrated for it all to come to a halt. But I couldn’t shake the sense that I needed to wait.

And let me tell you why. The Holy Spirit was preparing me and giving me space to witness the true change in Kyle. When he surrendered himself and allowed the Spirit to work fully in his life, everything began to shift! We still weren’t living together, but I could see a real heart change in how he interacted with me and the kids.

Around May, I told him I would give our marriage another chance. We started spending more time together—he would stay on weekends—and we decided he would officially move back in with us at the beginning of September. I won’t lie, I was nervous. What if this was all a show? What if everything reversed, and I had to go through it all over again? I felt anxious but also hopeful. Each week I saw more and more growth in Kyle. There were certainly rough patches as we spent more time together, and there were also good times.

We found out on August 30th, I was pregnant! Then life got worse and better at the same time. Allow me to briefly explain. Within a week of my positive pregnancy test, I couldn’t get out of bed, eat, or drink. I was diagnosed with Hyperemesis Gravidarum—a severe sickness affecting 1–3% of pregnant women. For over two months, I needed at-home health care and a medication pump.

What could have been a major roadblock for our fragile marriage instead became a turning point. I have no doubt God used it to strengthen our marriage and rebuild the broken trust I had. Bedbound and unable to care for myself, the kids, or the house, Kyle chose to work from home and took everything upon himself. While working full-time, he cared for the kids, made meals, kept the house running, and took care of me.

At first, I worried the stress would lead him to relapse. But instead, I saw him cope in healthy ways—leaning on God and the godly relationships he had built during our separation. It felt like witnessing a miracle every day. Everything he did, from cleaning to playing with the kids, came from a place of joy—true joy as his strength. He was operating from a never-ending strength only God could provide.

On December 29, 2023, I was deeply hurting. I was scared my family was being torn apart by choices outside my control. I had no idea what the new year would bring, but I knew it would be difficult.

Now, on December 29, 2024, I can honestly say I am living the life I prayed for. Healing has happened over and over again. Trust continues to be rebuilt. And in four months, we will welcome our baby into this family.

THANK YOU, JESUS, for an ending I never saw coming. THANK YOU, JESUS, for making a way when there seemed to be no way!”

WRITING EXCELLENT ENDINGS FROM THE MIDDLE

Kayla and Kyle's story reminds us how unexpected and beautiful a redemptive ending can be. It's not perfect, and it's not without scars, but it's a reminder that God is always working, even in the messiest, most broken parts of our lives.

In every story we are living—regardless of how it ends—we have the chance to reflect God's goodness, to love courageously, and to walk faithfully. That's what makes every ending an Excellent Ending. When we live for God's glory, even the darkest chapters can become part of a greater, redemptive narrative.

As Mordecai said to Esther, "If you keep quiet at a time like this, deliverance and relief for the Jews will arise from some other place, but you and your relatives will die. Who knows if perhaps you were made queen for just such a time as this?" (Esther 4:14).

This verse is a striking reminder that our role in the stories we're living—no matter how messy, uncertain, or challenging—matters deeply. Just as Esther's courage and faithfulness shaped the outcome of her story, we, too, are called to participate in our stories with trust in God's purpose, even when we don't know how they will end.

Regardless of the 20 different ways your stories might end, remember this: God is still writing, and how you choose to participate matters more than you can imagine. This week, in the middle of all the stories you're living, you have the opportunity to help write Excellent Endings!

Greg McNichols