what stories are you telling?

a number of the simple way staff and residents are currently at the Christian Community Development Association [CCDA] conference in Minnesota which started last nite and is set to be an incredible time and i’m sure i will share a little bit about that here.

last nite, Richard Twiss, a native american leader [who also spoke some challenging things last year which i think in part led to this year’s theme being ‘Reconcile’] started off proceedings with a simple challenge:

“The original followers of Jesus didn’t quote books and verses – they told stories.” In fact the early Christians for many years told stories and it was only much later that the stories were put together and approved as the canon that it became about John 3.16 and Romans 8. Before then they simply recounted stories.

i think most of us find evangelism tough… but we all have stories… if you are a Jesus follower and don’t have any stories then you really have to question your Jesus following… but if you do [and i’ll bet you do] then maybe this is a way that will free you up from the pressure of evangelism or discipling or any other of those large christianese words…

simply tell your story more… and tell His stories more… and especially share the space where His story intersects with yours…

if His story was great enough to affect yours in the way it hopefully has, then it is great enough to affect someone else, and possibly a whole lot less daunting…

so go on and tell it [mountain optional]

psalmthing to chew on: psalm 24

hm, after the richness of 23 which i could have explored a lot more and in greater depth, i found 24 a bit more of a dig. nice poetic vibe and all, but not a lot jumping out at me and so maybe this is one where a bunch of you can chime in with your suggestions…

i guess the one thing that stood out is the beginning which reads – ‘The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; for he founded it on the seas and established it on the waters.’ [vs. 1-2]

this kinda reminds me of something i have been saying, or at least writing, a lot lately, especially in the welcome letters to people who come and visit the simple way – be still and know that He is God – take a moment to remember that this story is all about Him. we do like to make it all about us, but it’s not. and the same goes for the planet. kind of like the idea of colonisation – the white man arrives [it’s always ‘the blasted white man’] and moves into land that clearly has other people living on it and proudly declares that ‘we have discovered this land’. now a huge focus all around the world in recentish times [lets go with decades] has been that, “no, in fact this is not your land, we the native Americans/Africans/Australasians were here before you and what right have you to come and take our land and claim it as your own.” important point and really needs to be examined and worked out and repentance/restoration/reconciliation needs to happen for sure… however, that is not the complete truth as ‘The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it…’ And so even before the native peoples were on that particular piece of land, there is Someone who is making a previous ownership claim.

and so this becomes a stewardship question. whoever you are, this story is not about you, it is the story of God and you have been invited to become an active part of that story. wherever you are is not land that actually belongs to you but to God and He has invited you to look after it well, in such a way that it exists in good shape for generations to come.

we have a lot of work to do. and i guess 24 did have something in it…