Why are you so enraged
When you find no fault
In my words, in my walk
Why smear my story
When I wasn’t talking to you?
Why silence me
When my tale is not for you?

I love stories! I was advised during my PhD to narrow my research to something I truly love or the voluminous intensity will be too wearying for completion. I found a way to infuse narrative into a technical subject and thus enjoyed it to the end. I was raised on stories. My mum and I exchanged novels growing up. My favorite part of our daily evening classes with my parents when we were kids was story telling. The first poem I wrote as a child was based on a true life story my dad told us. It is still my dream to tell stories, not just mine but extraordinary stories of ordinary people whose lives have been transformed by the supernatural power of our Sovereign God.

I think that’s one of the reasons I love Jesus and His messages. He was a life-changing story teller. Of course He studied the Bible but He related the majority of it in stories – Good News of God’s salvation, deliverance, healing, etc. He taught unforgettable lessons through parables. His stories touched on every subject; relationship with His Father; relations with families, friends and neighbors, among others. I don’t know anyone who is allergic to good stories.

Story telling is something we all can do and relate with. Especially when the subject is something or someone we are familiar with. Any wonder God uses such ordinary tool to work extraordinary wonders in the lives of people? That is what we are called to do: go tell the world the story of God’s love, that Jesus saves, heals, delivers, protects, provides …. Go tell what you have experienced about God’s incredible power and amazing grace. Anybody can do it. Yet, not everybody will do it. To those who are doing it, simple as it may appear, opposition arises because even the devil knows that there is power in true life stories.

Jesus understood something many of us don’t today, which is the reason why we get discouraged and falter or give up. He understood that His story is not for everybody. He recognized that there are those the Father has given Him, who will listen and heed the lessons in His story. Outside of these chosen ones, others scuffed, criticized and demonized Him and His tales. Yet, Jesus was not discouraged by their mudslinging. He was not distracted by their attacks. Instead, He focused His energies on the sheep that were willing to listen and learn.

Not everybody will listen to our stories. Not everybody who listens will like or value what we so cherish. Not everybody will believe and accept our accounts. And that is okay because we are not sent to everyone. We miss when we bury our stories in graves of silence because people don’t like us, don’t like or believe or accept them. They don’t lose because we quit. We are the losers, not them. We are the ones disobeying the command to go and share the Good News of God in us, of God with us. Those attacking us have nothing to lose but we have a lot at stake if because of them we decide never again, to share such stories that must be told.

(To be continued)

Glory!