Day 7: I've Got A Story

Hey, do you have a favorite book or movie, one that you could watch like over and over and over again and never get tired of it? One whose characters are so vivid in your imagination that they almost seem like a real person to you? Where those moving moments are so burned into your emotions that you could convince yourself that they happened to you, too. Hey, I bet you had it in your head even as I was talking. What was yours? I love both books and movies, especially ones with great stories. There's something satisfying about a well-told story, and it speaks to something fundamental in our nature as human beings. For as long as human beings have been alive, even before writing or stone carving was invented, we've been tellers of stories. It's how we entertain ourselves, how we help other people understand who we are, how we try to make sense of the world, and how we wrestle with things that are beyond our understanding. In fact, when Jesus was trying to explain complicated topics like what God and heaven are like, or to teach memorable moral lessons about love, grace, and forgiveness, instead of just trying to explain it, He always came up with a great story to connect with His hearers. And the library that we have today that we call the Bible is full of these and so many other great stories waiting to be read. Stories are important because stories move us in a way that just telling facts can't. Stories matter because they are about people. And people matter infinitely to God. And hey, guess what? You have a story too. It's the story that your life tells. It's unique to just you. It's full of all kinds of ups and downs, plot twists, conflict, and resolution. And it's not over yet.

You still have the chance to write the next page of your story today. So let me ask you, what makes a story truly great? And how can we learn to live a better story? What makes great stories great? First great stories have incredible characters that undergo a journey that transforms them. Now these characters are rarely perfect, but we find ourselves rooting for them anyway. They have to discover a power hidden within them that allows them to overcome their imperfections. And as these characters venture into the unknown, they encounter trials and challenges, allies and enemies, all of which contribute to their growth. The climax arrives as a decisive confrontation, after which the hero returns to their world changed by their experiences. Frodo Baggins has to leave his home, battling all sorts of dark forces, and take the One Ring to Mount Doom. Luke Skywalker must journey to Alderaan with Obi-Wan Kenobi, facing off against his adversaries and learning who he really is in the process. Hagrid bursts into Harry Potter's front door with a birthday cake and an invitation to become a wizard and save the world. Katniss Everdeen must survive a brutal game of win or take all and then take down the totalitarian state that backs it. And there are equally amazing and powerful stories in the Bible too. Moses has to return to the land where he's wanted for murder to defy an empire and lead his people to freedom. Joseph must use his character and his cunning to survive being sold as a slave and imprisoned with the fate of his family and his nation in his hands. David has to face off against lions, giants, a king who wants him dead, and a never-ending string of usurpers and schemers. And these great stories speak to our hearts by connecting us to something that's true about us or true about the world. They tap into our universal human experiences and emotions like love, loss, ambition, or fear.

They can raise moral or ethical questions that challenge readers to think about their own beliefs and values. They connect us to something we personally think or feel. And they often stay with us long after we have finished the story. The stories told all through the Bible are these kind of stories. They're there specially chosen for us by God because they teach us something that's true about us, about human beings, the world, or God himself. And each one of these stories comes together to tell a unified story that points to Jesus. How much of this story of God do you know? Obviously, you've heard of Jesus' death and resurrection, but how do those connect to the larger story of God and what we have recorded in the Bible? He shows up at the very start of the story, first page, first line. God, who is goodness personified, decides to create a good world full of beauty and light and life. And he creates humans in his image, his image meaning they represent him to the world. They will have a good life and they will have a good life. They will have emotions and knowledge and a will to help him rule all over his wonderful creation. And he places them in a garden, a place where heaven and earth overlap, where God can walk with them. But then this story changes. It changes. It changes. It changes. takes a terrible turn. Humans are deceived by an enemy and instead of It changes. listening to God, they choose to disregard his way and follow their own desires. And this plunges God's good world into chaos, shame, injustice, and violence. People no longer trust in God's wisdom to lead them to good things, only their selfish appetites. And this leads them to spiritual death and breaks their

relationship with God in a way they couldn't possibly fix. So God has to make a way. He chooses a man, Abraham, to start a family. This family would be special and would be God's representative to the world. He gives them a special set of laws to set them apart from the nations around them and promises them a place to meet with him and have their sins forgiven. In just a handful of generations though, these promises are forgotten and God's chosen family descends back into violence and selfishness, forgetting God completely. But even though they gave up on him, God never gives up on people. Over and over again, he sends them messengers, leaders, and kings to get them to turn back to him. But it never lasts. So instead, God puts on humanity in the form of Jesus, sets an example for all of us on how to live lives of love. And he demonstrated this love by taking on the consequences of our sin and dying for them once and for all, becoming the perfect representative for us and bearing the cost of every sin ever committed. And he defeated death once and for all by rising from the grave three days later. He returned to his father but left us the real presence of God in the form of the Spirit who lives in us. And now, with the power of sin and death forever broken, we can look forward to a future where we will be reunited with Jesus on a new heaven and earth, just like it was in the first garden, a place where God's space and our space collide. Someday all creation will be redeemed and set right once again. This is the grand story, told briefly, but it's made up of hundreds of scenes that have played out through human history. And your story is part of the larger story of God's redemption of the world, too. It's our privilege to get to tell this story and our part in it. So, are you ready? You have a God story, too. Jesus was clear that it's our job to make it known to the world. His friend Matthew, who wrote the first biography of Jesus that we find in the Bible, remembers Jesus' parting words like this, Then Jesus came to them and said, All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching

them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age. Now, the word disciple may sound like some fancy Christian word, but if you look at it in the Greek language that Matthew wrote in, it was just the word that was used for someone who learned from someone else. So don't hesitate if you don't think you know enough. We're called to make learners, not theologians. Everyone is still on the journey of learning more and more about God, and you can serve as a guide. The most impactful way you can guide someone else toward God is by sharing what He's done in your life. Can you tell your God story? Here are three easy things to remember to help you share. First, set the stage for what your life was like before God. What were you going through? What set your priorities for you? What struggles did you have? Your honesty can be so disarming. Don't be afraid to share what you're comfortable sharing. Now second, talk about the moment that you accepted God's call and chose to follow Jesus. What circumstances brought you to that moment? How did you recognize your need for God? Where were you? How did God get your attention? And finally, share the positive changes you've seen since you decided to follow Jesus. How has God benefited your life? How have your priorities and decisions shifted? What changes have your friends and family observed? Has anyone around you chosen to follow Jesus because you did? I would also encourage you to practice it. Be able to tell it in different lengths. Could you tell it in the span of an elevator ride? Could you tell it while waiting in line for coffee? What about over lunch with a friend? This is the greatest responsibility we have. God has entrusted us with the task of stewarding His story by sharing our stories. So can I challenge you to pray for someone? Bob. Now Bob isn't a guy. It's an acronym that helps us pray specifically for God's power to be storytellers. To share God's story, it takes Bob, B-O-B. Burden, Opportunity, and Boldness. Now for the first B, pray that God would give you a burden for the loss. The kind we talked about on day five when Jesus looked on the crowds with compassion. O stands for Opportunity. Ask God to put people in your path that are ready to hear. Many times opportunity

simply begins with asking the right questions. Be prepared to listen first before you speak. And finally, the last B stands for boldness. Pray that God would remove your fear and give you the faith to share. Leading others to become disciples, learners, and followers is a privilege that we shouldn't take lightly. We have people's eternal destiny in our grasp. So let's be bold and help others write their God stories. Could today be the day? So now is the moment where your story and God's story intersect. Paul writes this to his friends in Corinth. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come, the old has gone, the new is here. All this is from God who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation. That God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ and that he was giving us the new life. He was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We're therefore Christ ambassadors as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf, be reconciled to God. This is an incredible passage and it speaks to the heart of why we are here on earth. First, through what Jesus did, we've been reconciled to God.

We have been made right again. And because of this, we've been given the ministry of reconciliation. That means God has placed on us the responsibility and the privilege of sharing his good news. So now you know God's story and I hope you've taken a moment to reflect on your story too. Now you get a chance to rewrite someone else's story. You get to, as Paul says, implore. That means to ask with all your strength people to be reconciled to God. So how do you go about it? I'm gonna walk you through a simple prayer based out of some truths that we know in the Bible that you can pray with people. Now this method was taught to me by my friend and mentor years ago. It's one of the best and easiest ways to remember the gospel. It's as simple as A-B-C. A stands for admit. That means we first tell God we know. We have trampled on his ways, broken his heart. B stands for believe. That we trust that what Jesus did on the cross restored us back to God. And C stands for confess. We confess we believe in his resurrection on Easter and commit to follow him as Lord.

Now if you look on the webpage below, we've listed these three steps and a helpful verse to remember to go with each one. So a sample prayer would go something like this. Dear God, thank you for loving me. I'm sorry I've sinned and I want to change. I trust that what Jesus did on the cross has saved me. I believe that he came to life again. I choose to follow you as Lord from this day forward. In Jesus' name I pray, amen. You've just finished the first week of the rest of your life. Your story with God may have just begun, but by committing to the habits we've talked about this week, you have the tools to write an incredible narrative for yourself. Like the main character in a great story, your journey won't be linear. You're still going to encounter challenges along the way, so daily prayer will be your guide to hear God. Continue to spend time in the word and fill your heart with truth. I hope you have a great day and I'll see you next week. I hope you have a great day and I'll see you next week.