FACE TO FACE
In the Hands of the Father John Melby
In my office, I have a treasured art piece titled "In the Hands of the Father" by artist Roger Loveless. (See the picture on this page). The painting is of the manger scene with Joseph pictured holding Baby Jesus and Mary resting in the background. For me, as a father of four, this painting is a heartwarming and ‘a bit different’ perspective of the Christmas story. The 2020 Christmas "story" was significantly different for most people due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The story of Jesus’ birth, however, remains constant at each Christmas including this one. From Luke 2: 9-14: “An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger." And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”
Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw him, they worshiped him, but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Relating personal stories of faith is influential and effective for inspiring others to embrace the gospel message. Story telling builds connections and trust between people. Stories are easy to remember and remembered for a longer time. Psychologist Jerome Bruner’s research led him to conclude that key messages are 20 times more likely to be remembered if told within a story. Stories cross boundaries. As an example, there basically are three types of learners: visual, auditory and kinesthetic. Storytelling works for all three. Visual learners connect with images created by stories. Auditory learners focus on spoken words and the storyteller’s voice. Kinesthetic learners remember feelings from a well-done story.
Luke’s words are powerful, and peaceful. He writes eloquently in these verses about the ‘greatest story ever told’ for Christians throughout the world. Written or spoken stories are captivating. They inspire, connect and give learning.
Storytelling can also lift the spirits of the storyteller. A good story can be exciting and interesting to write and speak out. By the way, long, disconnected stories can cause people to disengage. Best to be brief and brilliant in telling a story. If not brilliant, be at least brief!
Jesus’ parables do just that and more. Various Bible scholars agree that about one-third of Jesus’ teachings were in parables.
One of the most effective tools of evangelism is personal testimony stories.
A parable is a narrative that seems simple yet illuminates a deeper lesson. Jesus had the wisdom to clarify profound spiritual truths with stories that his followers could connect to and better understand what he was teaching. As an aside, in my work career, stories were part of my job. I directed employee communication for 10,000 plus engineers at Motorola. This work included performance improvement talks given to employees and delivered by senior vice presidents. I encouraged the SVPs to add inspirational stories to their messages. The stories helped the work project teams perform better in a way that numbers could not accomplish. There is a key message for all Christians regarding stories. If the greatest story is about Jesus’ birth and life, and Jesus was the greatest teacher who used parables, shouldn’t Christians fervently use stories for fulfilling the mission of spreading the gospel message? Matthew 28:16-20 says:
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• It is about God and not you. • Ask your listeners to place their faith in Jesus, not in you. • The gospel, not your testimony, is the power unto salvation. • Use Scripture. Faith comes by hearing the Word of God. • Keep it simple. There are two main types of faith stories: Salvation and situational. A salvation story is how one came to trust that Jesus is his/her personal Savior. The salvation story usually has four main parts: 1. Your life before you were a Christian. Were there struggles? Did you experience pain from sin? 2. How you become a Christian. What happened that changed you? How did God reveal your need for him? 3. The steps taken to become a Christian. Be clear and
