Stories

I cannot wait. After not being able to be with fellow pilgrims and journeyers for the last two weeks, I am excited about returning this Sunday. The absence is a result of pneumonia, a fall I suffered which required four days in the hospital and a two week time of rest at home.

There are some imposed limitations to what I can and cannot do on Sunday, but I am able to return to what I love doing more than anything else...telling stories based on The Story.

Leonard Sweet says, "The church’s failure to tell stories in a culture that talks in stories is a story in its own right." With that in mind, I am already thinking about all of the stories that have unfolded in the last two weeks in my life. Through all of them I have seen and heard the words of the Master Storyteller reminding me that there are still more narratives to unpack.

I guess the reason that I love stories so much is best captured in the words of Eugene Peterson..."We live in narrative, we live in story. Existence has a story shape to it. We have a beginning and an end, we have a plot, we have characters."

The thought occurred to me recently...What would happen if we cared for each others stories?  What would it look like for us to honor the stories in people's lives? What would happen if we did more listening to people's stories and less trying to get their story to look like ours?

So, I return this Sunday. Words are not adequate to describe my excitement and anticipation for Sunday morning at 10:45.

Here is the prayer that I am praying as I prepare for the gathering of pilgirms...

Oh, God, don't let my story get in the way of yours.

Amen.

Not a bad prayer to pray daily...