Story-Boarding the Great Story
“Once upon a time there was a purple ... ”
We reach toward the next word, don’t we? A purple bear? A purple boy? If it continues, “a purple urple” it’s going to be a very different story than, “a purple spot on her lip that both repulsed and intrigued Ferdinand.”
Great story thrusts us into another world. Our imagination stirs, we can “see” it unfolding; we wonder how it will end. We hope that the storyteller won’t let us down.
As I practice telling the story of Jesus, I’m aware that different listeners need different stories.
Many Christians reduce the epic story of Jesus to just one part. About the only part we ever tell is the guilt/grace story. We say, “Jesus can save you from your sins.” That is a story of amazing grace, and we should keep on telling it, but it’s not the whole story.
Other stories we need to have “at the ready”:
1. The Healing Story — Jesus can bring healing to your body/mind/emotions.
2. The Meaning Story — Jesus can infuse significance into your life which is otherwise random, at best, and a cruel joke, at worst.
3. The Service Story — Jesus can send you on a sacrificial mission in life.
4. The Peace Story — Jesus conquers your anxieties with His peace.
5. The Love Story — Jesus loves you. Let that love wash over you.
6. The Transformation Story — Jesus can take what you have nearly wrecked and create a life of great beauty and usefulness.
7. The Holiness Story — Jesus can enable you to live above your damaging patterns by giving you perfect love.
8. The Hope Story — Jesus can plunge our shriveled hearts into a deep well of hope, hope based on Him, not on our performance.
Pick one and practice it ... tell it about yourself.
~David Roller
We reach toward the next word, don’t we? A purple bear? A purple boy? If it continues, “a purple urple” it’s going to be a very different story than, “a purple spot on her lip that both repulsed and intrigued Ferdinand.”
Great story thrusts us into another world. Our imagination stirs, we can “see” it unfolding; we wonder how it will end. We hope that the storyteller won’t let us down.
As I practice telling the story of Jesus, I’m aware that different listeners need different stories.
Many Christians reduce the epic story of Jesus to just one part. About the only part we ever tell is the guilt/grace story. We say, “Jesus can save you from your sins.” That is a story of amazing grace, and we should keep on telling it, but it’s not the whole story.
Other stories we need to have “at the ready”:
1. The Healing Story — Jesus can bring healing to your body/mind/emotions.
2. The Meaning Story — Jesus can infuse significance into your life which is otherwise random, at best, and a cruel joke, at worst.
3. The Service Story — Jesus can send you on a sacrificial mission in life.
4. The Peace Story — Jesus conquers your anxieties with His peace.
5. The Love Story — Jesus loves you. Let that love wash over you.
6. The Transformation Story — Jesus can take what you have nearly wrecked and create a life of great beauty and usefulness.
7. The Holiness Story — Jesus can enable you to live above your damaging patterns by giving you perfect love.
8. The Hope Story — Jesus can plunge our shriveled hearts into a deep well of hope, hope based on Him, not on our performance.
Pick one and practice it ... tell it about yourself.
~David Roller
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