An axe for the frozen sea within us

Can you remember a time someone told you a story and had you on the edge of your seat?

When my kids were little I would go into their room at bedtime to tell them a story I made up, and just as the plot reached some cliff hanger moment I would end the story until the next night. They loved and hated that moment.

Beyond eliciting giggles and silliness, I would also use these stories to drop in little truths about how to treat one another, or examples of when to pray when we're scared.

Whether it's a funny anecdote about what happened to us or a fictional story, a well-told tale is very captivating and an excellent vessel through which to present truth.

Jesus was a master storyteller. One of his biographers, Matthew, records:

34 Jesus used stories when he spoke to the people. In fact, he did not tell them anything without using stories. 35 So God’s promise came true, just as the prophet had said,
“I will use stories
    to speak my message
and to explain things
    that have been hidden
since the creation
    of the world.”
~ Matthew 13:34-35

What I appreciate about this is the culture of truth-telling through story. We live in an information age. Because of our smart phones, millions upon millions of facts are in our pocket and available to us within seconds. We love facts, value the truth they reveal, and we like to pass on facts.

The problem is, we can know the facts and still miss the point.

Jesus used story to convey things that "have been hidden since the creation of the world." He could have used cold, hard facts, but he didn't.

Consider these two scenarios to convey truth about God to a spiritually curious person who asks about the character of God.

Scenario 1: "That's a great question. The answer is God is love and God is all-powerful."
Scenario 2a: "That's a great question. Can I tell you a story about a time I went through a difficult season and God showed his love and care for me?"
Scenario 2b: "That's a great question. Can I tell you a story from the life of Jesus about a time he had compassion on a woman who had been in pain for 12 years?"

PAUSE and REFLECT: How do you talk about God to others? Many of us focus on facts about God. But as already stated, a person can hear the facts and miss the point. Further, a person can refute your facts with their own (that's the thing about the internet - you can usually find a fact to agree with your opinion).

But a story has a way of conveying truth "under the radar." One of my seminary professors said in a book he wrote that facts and direct assertion do not challenge us like we need, but stories can "shake us awake like a blow to the skull, and are an axe for the frozen sea within us."

So I offer you this invitation: if you are a follower of Jesus, the next time someone asks you about God, begin your answer with, "Can I tell you a story about..." It can be your story from your own life, or a Jesus-story from the Gospels, but as a storyteller you will be walking in the footsteps of Jesus, and it will awaken the other person to God's love far more than our dogmatic facts.

If you’re not a follower of Jesus, ask someone who is to tell you a story about God.

And perhaps, in both cases, the frozen sea with us all will begin to thaw.

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