If you listen to my teaching for very long, you will hear that even though I am thoroughly committed to expositional teaching (taking big chunks of the Bible, explaining what they mean and applying it to our lives) I also tell a few stories to make my points—many of which are about my small kids.
I do this for a number of reasons. Here are a couple.
1. Stories help people remember engage with and remember Truth.
Even though I fear many communicators in our day may take this too far to the expense of depth in teaching the Bible, most agree that even the most glazed over listener always looks up when someone up front starts telling a story. It is who we are as people. That’s part of why Jesus was known as a master storyteller. Simply, put stories stick.
2. The nature of modern ministry.
In our world, cultivating biblical community is a difficult task. Even though we organize our church around groups, have men’s and women’s ministries that are built on relational mentoring and encourage people to get together and do life as much as possible, true community is still a daunting goal in our frenetic and disconnected society. Even though, by God’s grace, I believe a sense of community is more evident in our church than in many churches I have been a part of in the past, many of us still live in different parts of our city and find it difficult to connect in the midst of the busyness of life.
And that’s part of how stories can be so helpful because they connect us with life where it happens.
In a sense, a story is a window into the story teller’s life.
I love this passage from the Apostle Paul’s letter to the church at Thessalonica long ago.
7 But we were gentle among you, like a nursing mother taking care of her own children. 8 So, being affectionately desirous of you, we were ready to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves, because you had become very dear to us. 1 Thess. 2:7-8 ESV
This means that Paul’s ministry wasn’t just ‘in the pulpit on Sunday.’
It was also in the pulpit of his life.
In writing letters to his churches. Through his friends coming over and hanging out and working with him as he made tents. Doing life with him.
Since this is something we hope to continue to embrace in our growing church that is constantly making space for new friends, this ’sharing of our own selves’ is going to look a little different than it did in Paul’s day.
But that’s why there are personal stories that can teach Truth.
And blog entries.
And Facebook.
And coffees and lunches.
And why I tell stories to illustrate Truth on Sundays.
Because I want to share as much of my life as I can so that you can know that the Truth is for all of us and should be changing us all. And that your lead pastor is a real person who lives a real life, has real struggles, and who has real kids who put real beans up their noses. : )
When is the last time you told someone a story about what you learned or about what God is doing in your life?
Do you have any stories like that? If not, why not?
If so, we’d love to hear them.
Send us your story of what God is teaching you, maybe even through Crossing, and we will begin to post them here next week.
Stay tuned. The story is just beginning.
