I am both amazed and grateful at how God brings scripture and books and music and blogs and podcasts into my life at just the right time. Recently I have come to find my thinking and praying centered around the idea of story - and sharing stories. It fits with my word for the year of Share.
In the recent RCL readings for Eastertide we read the story of Peter and Cornelius. What struck me most about this passage was that Peter didn't give some indepth theological treatise when he walked in to find the friends and family of Cornelius eagerly waiting for him. This of course was a shock for both of them, Peter the Jew and Cornelius the Roman Centurion. So Peter told his story - the story of what he just learned about how the message of Jesus love was for all people, both Romans and Jews. So at the same time I was studying this passage I came across a podcast about C.S. Lewis with Alister McGrath. He has written extensively about Lewis and the conversation I listened to the subject was the Narnia Chronicles. And I remembered them. I still remember the first time I read them - it wasn't in childhood. I was in graduate school and one weekend, I don't remember why, but I read them - and I couldn't stop. I read the whole series one Saturday. I have read them again several times since then. We read them to our children. Each time I saw more connections to scripture. The stories spoke to my heart and emotions as well as my mind as only stories can do. So I am reading them again - and again there is so much more to discover with each chapter. As I do I see again the importance of story. Here is what I have put together so far: Stories engage us for God, the great story teller, made us to tell stories. The Bible itself is "one story that leads to Jesus" (as the Bible Project and biblical theology teaches). we need to immerse ourselves in the story of scripture. Christian faith is allowing our story to become a part of the bigger story of God's plan for redemption, giving each follower a purpose and a role to play. Each of us has our own story. It is a story that no one else can tell. It isn't just one single story of one single time but many stories. Maybe it is a story of how we came to faith or how our faith has deepened from a special experience or something we have seen in God's word or God's world. When we tell these stories of our lives they are real - and they engage others. Part of our stories are how we know and what we have learned about God in the scriptures but they must also contain our experiences with Christ and his presence in our lives. We are tempted to believe that our stories are not good enough or that we don't have the skill to tell our story. We think we must be great writers or speakers to tell our stories. But this is not true. God has given each of us a way and the skill we need to tell our story - it may be a painting or a photograph or a quilt or special meal - whatever you find joy in doing. This is how you tell your story. We all need to see how our stories fit into God's purpose. This will take study and prayer. We will then need to develop ways to tell our story and to really listen to the stories of others. Then we will need courage to tell our stories in ways that others see the love of God and are drawn to his love. So read Narnia again. Listen to the beautiful story and see in it God's story of salvation. Put your story and your life in God's hands. Tell your story as only you can.
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This page is in blog format so the posts are in order with the most recent first. Here I hope to post some of the things that I am learning from by Bible study and other topics.
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Soli Deo Gloria,
1 Corinthians 10:31
© 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 Karen Milligan
1 Corinthians 10:31
© 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 Karen Milligan