Storytelling by Season Bowers

ministry

STORY TELLING season

ministry

bowers

leadership

curriculum

Dear Storyteller, Tell me your story.

I want to hear it. I want to celebrate God's goodness in your life and cheer you on as you embark on the great adventure that is being written with you as the hero.

Does this ring in your heart? Are you ready? If yes, you are in the right place! If you aren't sure, you are in the right place!

Believe it or not, you are a hero. There is a great story being told, the story of God and His love for all of His creation and you are right in the center. There have been many twists and turns in this story and they have all led up to this moment. No matter what part you have played in the past, the Lord has a powerful role for you to play right now.

In this class, we are going to discover the story of God, the story of your past, and partner with the Lord to embark on the great story of your future. We will be inspired to tap into the glory inside of us as children of Creator God. We will come to a greater understanding of the motivation of God and the history of His people to join in the greatest love story ever told.

I have one thing to ask of you. Will you be open? I have great confidence that the Lord has amazing plans for you to grow and gain the confidence to live out a powerful story for His glory, but you must be willing to take a risk. Will you? I promise to risk with you. I will lead from a place of vulnerability and transparency so that you can see what a life lived surrendered to the Lord - although not perfectly - looks like. I have experienced first-hand what it is like to do this and learn about the power of God's story in our lives and how it can be rewritten for His glory.

This is not an art class - but we will discover the artist within.

This is not a creative writing class - but we will tell the best story well.

This is not a performing arts class - but His glory will be on display.

This is a class that will change your life, if you will let it. Let's tell the story of God's goodness and glory!

Joyfully, Season

STORYTELLING Chapter 1: EVERYTHING IS STORY ��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 5 Chapter 2: MODERN STORYTELLING �������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 15 Chapter 3: THE BIG PICTURE STORY OF THE BIBLE ���������������������������������������������������� 23 Chapter 4: JESUS AS STORYTELLER ���������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 29 Chapter 5: DISCOVER THE STORY OF YOUR LIFE ����������������������������������������������������������� 37 Chapter 6: DREAMING AND PLANNING: THE STORY YOU WANT TO TELL ������������� 47 Chapter 7: PUBLIC STORYTELLING ����������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 55 Chapter 8: STORYTELLING EXHIBITION �������������������������������������������������������������������������� 61

1

EVERYTHING IS STORY

“Once upon a time…”

Every fairytale ever

STORY TELLING by Season Bowers

WHAT SEASON ARE YOU IN? Timing is everything. You are entering into a specific time or season in your life and it is my goal to help you recognize it and gain as much wisdom, knowledge, love, and joy as possible as you make your way through. It’s my great pleasure to be a part of your life story.

My name is Season. It’s not Summer, Spring, Susan, Seasons, or Seasoning. Just Season. It’s from Ecc. 3:1, “To everything there is a season and a time for every purpose under heaven.” I am a daughter of the King and called to bring the truth and joy of Jesus to the world. My story is one of great highs, deep lows, and constant love of the Father in Heaven. It’s an ongoing tale of the glory of the Lord and I tell my story as worship of the King.

WHAT IS A STORY? A story is a process for understanding the world and our place in it. It’s how we make sense of ourselves and our surroundings. While stories can be many things, most often they tell the tale of the hero’s journey.

What does it take to make a story?

1. Setting: the world of a story including time, place, and culture.

2. Characters bring the story to life. a. The protagonist – the main character, often the hero, who feels different but doesn’t yet know their path b. The antagonist – the person or thing in the hero’s way c. The guide – the person or mythical creature that gives the gift or tool(s) for the hero to meet their potential or accomplish their purpose d. Supporting characters – provide support or opposition to the hero e. Witnesses – they provide commentary, purpose, and establish environment and atmospheric tone 3. Plot: something has to happen! The traditional story arc includes: a. Exposition – which establishes the setting and tone b. Rising action – the catalyst for change, increasing tension and raising the stakes c. Main conflict – typically the clash between the protagonist and antagonist d. Falling action – resolving smaller conflicts, tying up loose ends and coming to terms with the cost of the journey e. Resolution – the hero returns home but is not the same as he was before he embarked ~6~

CHAPTER 1 — Everything is story

4. Conflict a. Man versus self

b. Man versus person

c. Man versus nature

“The usual hero adventure begins with someone from whom something has been taken, or who feels there is something lacking in the normal experience available or permitted to the members of society. The person then takes off on a series of adventures beyond the ordinary, either to recover what has been lost or to discover what has been some life-giving elixir. It’s usually a cycle, a coming and a returning.” 1 Joseph CAMPBELL ~7~

STORY TELLING by Season Bowers

EVERYTHING TELLS A STORY

“Let’s start at the beginning, a very good place to start…” 2 Maria RAINER, The Sound of Music

1. Everything has a beginning, a middle, and an end.

2. Everything has a story of its own.

3. We have a story with everything.

~8~

CHAPTER 1 — Everything is story

IN-CLASS ENGAGEMENT: Use the space provided below to answer the following question about the object displayed in class: WHAT STORY IS THIS OBJECT TELLING?

Sonder – n. the realization that each random passerby is living a life as vivid and complex as your own — populated with their own ambitions, friends, routines, worries and inherited craziness — an epic story that continues invisibly around you like an anthill sprawling deep underground, with elaborate passageways to thousands of other lives that you’ll never know existed, in which you might appear only once, as an extra sipping coffee in the background, as a blur of traffic passing on the highway, as a lighted window at dusk.3

THE STORY OF STORY Stories are used to impact or change our attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors.

Humans are wired to connect with others. Our survival is dependant on our connection. Science has shown that stories are often what help us understand whether or not those we encounter are safe and can be trusted.

1. The ability to create a narrative and/or understand and follow the process of a story is one of the things that sets us apart as humans. a. The discovery of cave paintings points to stories as the most fundamental communication method. b. Through the ages, storytellers had a greater chance of survival as they were protected, cared for, and even supported due to their valuable ability.4 c. Stories were the method of survival.5

“The shortest distance between two people is a story.” 6 Patti DIGH ~9~

STORY TELLING by Season Bowers

NOTES

~10~

CHAPTER 1 — Everything is story

THE IMMORTAL STORY “We know that by 1.5 million years ago early humans were crafting remarkably symmetrical hand axes, hunting cooperatively, and possibly controlling fire. Such skills would have required careful observation and mimicry, step-by-step instruction, and an ability to hold a long series of events in one’s mind — an incipient form of plot. At least one hundred thousand years ago, and possibly much earlier, humans were drawing, painting, making jewelry, and ceremonially burying the dead. And by forty thousand years ago, humans were creating the type of complex, imaginative, and densely populated murals found on the chalky canvases of ancient caves: art that reveals creatures no longer content to simply experience the world but who felt compelled to record and re-imagine it. Over the past few hundred thousand years, the human character gradually changed. We became consummate storytellers.

But fixating on the social benefits of storytelling elides an even more fundamental purpose: a story is really a way of thinking — perhaps the most powerful and versatile skill in the human cognitive repertoire. The world confronts the mind with myriad impressions, a profusion of other often perplexing beings, and an infinity of possible futures. The increasingly large brains of our ancestors, all the more attuned to the world’s complexity, needed a way to organize this overwhelming torrent of information, to pass the multiplicity of experience through a reverse prism and distill it into a single coherent sequence. Stories were the solution.

A story is a choreographed hallucination that temporarily displaces reality. At the behest of the storyteller, this conjured world may mimic perceived reality, perhaps rehearsing a past experience; it may modify reality, placing proxies of actual people in hypothetical scenarios or fictional people in familiar settings; or it may abandon reality for a realm of fantasy. Before stories, the human mind was only a partial participant in its own conscious experience of life, restricted to the recent past and near future, to its immediate surroundings and fragmented memories of other places. By telling stories, early humans gained unprecedented autonomy over their subjective experiences: they could dictate and record extensive histories and make intricate long-term plans; they could obscure, revise, and mythologize truth; they could dwell in alternate worlds of their own making.

Storytelling transformed our species from intelligent ape to demigod.

Like trees in a forest, we too are rooted in the living mesh of another organism—in a web of story. We give life to the stories we tell, imagining entire worlds and preserving them on rock, paper, and silicon. Stories sustain us: they open paths of clarity in the chaos of existence, maintain a record of human thought, and grant us the power to shape our perceptions of reality. The coevolution of humans and stories may not be one of the oldest partnerships in the history of life on Earth, but it is certainly one of the most robust. As a psychic creature simultaneously parasitizing and nourishing the human mind, narrative was so thoroughly successful that it is now all but inextricable from language and thought. Stories live through us, and we live through stories.

The symbiosis of people and stories is unique in at least one regard. In order to survive, most symbiotic organisms need a specific partner and a narrow set of environmental conditions. In the wild, many seedlings will wither and die if their roots are not colonized by the right fungi; ~11~

STORY TELLING by Season Bowers

likewise, many fungi will fail to grow if they cannot find their botanical allies. Although we may rely on narrative to think, speak, and live, stories are not tethered to us in quite the same way.

Once recorded, a story has the potential to live longer and spread farther than any other creature.

All it requires is a consciousness to inhabit—and that consciousness need not be human, or even organic. Stories that earn the widest audiences over the longest stretches of time are exceedingly likely to continue surviving in one form or another. And if a recorded story finds itself utterly alone, it is perfectly content to wait indefinitely for the arrival of a new audience, whether that audience be human, alien, machine, or something else altogether. Stories are capable of symbiosis that transcends species; they are also a kind of life that transcends biology itself. If any organism can achieve true immortality, it is surely the story.�7

~12~

CHAPTER 1 — Everything is story

GROUP TIME Break into small groups and discuss the following questions. Record your answers in the space provided.

1. What was the first story you remember? What impacted you? Why do you remember it?

2. Ask someone in your circle to tell you the story they would tell someone else about you.

3. Write out / draw / and introduce the setting of your current story.

~13~

STORY TELLING by Season Bowers

FURTHER STUDY AND EXPLORATION Music: Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band – The Beatles

Books: The Hero with a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell

Movies: Big Fish

Radio/Podcast: The Moth Radio Hour

~14~

2

MODERN STORYTELLING

“During the past few decades, modern technology, with radio, tv, air travel, and satellites, has woven a network of communication which puts each part of the world into almost instant contact with all the other parts.�

David BOHM

STORY TELLING by Season Bowers

REVIEW THE QUESTIONS FROM WEEK ONE What was your favorite story as a child?

What is currently your favorite form of enjoying stories?

ENTER ENTERTAINMENT Last week, we discussed how storytelling was, and still is, a crucial element of our survival as a species. As our world modernized, a shift occurred. We no longer used story primarily for the purpose of information distribution for survival, and instead began storytelling for entertainment and leisure – for escape and pleasure.

1. Theatre a. Real people in front of you. i. Requires a willing suspension of disbelief – it’s real and personal. b. Writers and actors are the medium, but theatre doesn’t happen without the audience. c. “You need three things in the theatre – the play, the actors and the audience, and each must give something.” Kenneth Haigh 2. Art a. Visual art is a snapshot of a moment. i. The artist gives the power to the viewer to interpret the meaning and story. ii. The spectator has the power.

3. Radio a. The bridge between reading and watching, it allows for a level of freedom to imagine the visuals. i. The power belongs to the vocal performer and to the listener. ii. “TV gives everyone an image, but radio gives birth to a million images in a million brains.” Peggy Noonan ~16~

CHAPTER 2 — Modern storytelling

4. Music a. Emotionally driven, with freedom to imagine related imagery. i. The composer and the musicians have the power. ii. “Where words fail, music speaks.” Hans Christian Andersen 5. Video (TV, film, and internet) a. A comprehensive medium that has the power to communicate more broadly. i. Video is an editor’s medium. ii. “If it can be written or thought, it can be filmed.” Stanley Kubrick 6. Books (poetry and novels) a. The written word leads the reader into an imaginative experience that can’t be shared or accurately reproduced. i. The writer partners with the reader for an intimate and emotionally bonding experience. ii. “No two persons ever read the same book.” Edmund Wilson 7. Social media a. The power lies with the content creator. i. How much is left for the receiver to interpret?

8. Meme a. An instant transmission of culture. glish i. “Perhaps most famously, in his 1976 book The Selfish Gene, the En­ evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins coined the word meme to describe a “unit of cultural transmission” analogous to a biological gene. Memes, he wrote, could be ideas, tunes, or styles of clothing—­essentially any product of human intellect. Moreover, they were not just metaphorically alive but technically living things.”8

“New needs need new techniques. And the modern artists have found new ways and new means of making their statements… the modern painter cannot express this age, the airplane, the atom bomb, the radio, in the old forms of the renaissance or of any other past culture.”

Jackson POLLOCK ~17~

STORY TELLING by Season Bowers

IN-CLASS ENGAGEMENT Social media storytelling and the line between fact and fiction

~18~

CHAPTER 2 — Modern storytelling

SALES – MANIPULATIVE STORYTELLING The strategy to make you feel as though you must have something began long before you ever knew that thing existed.

Manipulation in Marketing: How It’s Used, and How to Use It Ethically 9

It’s why we love Shark Tank!

1. What are you selling? a. The love hate relationship with “self promotion”.

2. False humility is pride. a. You can’t deny your influence. b. How do we wield influence ethically? c. Where is the line between being “all about you” or “all about them”? i. How does storytelling intertwine?

KEY POINT: Difference-makers and people of integrity strive to help and heal real problems, not create a crisis to capitalize on human vulnerability.

~19~

STORY TELLING by Season Bowers

IN-CLASS ENGAGEMENT Use the space below to write a six word story:

NEXT WEEK 1. Be prepared to tell the class about your favorite product:

2. If you were going to tell your story, which of the mediums outlined today would you use? Why?

3. Who are the major players in your story?

~20~

CHAPTER 2 — Modern storytelling

FURTHER STUDY AND EXPLORATION Music: A Boy Named Sue – Johnny Cash

Books: Called to Create: A Biblical Invitation to Create, Innovate, and Risk by Jordan Raynor

Movies: Citizen Kane

Radio/Podcast: This American Life

~21~

3

THE BIG PICTURE STORY OF THE BIBLE

“I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.” relevations 22:13

STORY TELLING by Season Bowers

THE BIG PICTURE “Winter, Spring, Summer, or Fall, you’re my favorite season of all.”

My mother made a yarn art piece for my room when I was a baby – so very 70’s of her – of that lyrical rhyme. Just like our lives can be broken down into seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, and months, it is the big picture of the year that tells a more comprehensive tale.

Many small parts make up a whole. In order to appreciate the whole, you need to step back. A molecule is fascinating, but you can’t tell what it is a part of until you zoom out. Examining the minute details are important, but to really understand a concept you must see the whole picture.

The same idea applies to scripture.

It is important that we understand the big picture of the Bible so that we can have a greater understanding of the story of God and His people. That’s us! How can we be in relationship with God and not know our own story? We have taken the Bible and dissected it so minutely and compartmentalized it into so many tight boxes that we have lost the powerful and epic story of love in which we are players.

In his book Counterfeit Gospels10, Trevin Wax – the managing editor of The Gospel Project – explains this storyline as follows: 1. Creation a. One Hebrew word sums up the picture of Genesis 1 and 2: shalom – peace. i. Earth was full of God’s shalom, the kind of peace in which everything works according to God’s intention. b. The world was made for human flourishing. There we could live in joy in the presence of our Maker, worshiping God by loving Him and one another forever.

2. Fall a. Adam and Eve rejected God’s rule over them. i. We refer to their rebellious choice as “the fall,” and because they represented all of humanity, their action affects us too. b. We have – through our attitudes and actions – declared ourselves to be God’s enemies. This rebellion results in physical and spiritual death.

3. Redemption a. Thankfully, the loving Creator - who rightly shows Himself to be wrathful toward our sin - is determined to turn the evil and suffering we have caused into good that will be to His ultimate glory. ~24~

CHAPTER 3 — The big picture story of the bible

b. So the next movement shows God implementing a master plan for redeeming His world and rescuing fallen sinners. c. In the Person of Jesus Christ, God Himself comes to renew the world and restore His people. i. The grand narrative of scripture climaxes with the death and resurrection of Jesus.

4. Restoration a. The story doesn’t end with redemption. i. God has promised to renew the whole world, and the Bible gives us a peek into this glorious future. b. The restoration of all things will take place in two ways: Christ will return to judge sin and evil, and He will usher in righteousness and peace. i. God will purge this world of evil once and for all.

If we examine scripture through this four-act narrative, where can we find specific evidence to support this theological structure?

~25~

STORY TELLING by Season Bowers

GROUP WORK Break into groups and find scriptural examples for one of these four acts as defined by Trevin Wax. Identify at least three moments in scripture that highlight your group’s assigned act, and try to include examples from both Old and New Testaments as well as a Psalm.

CREATION

FALL

REDEMPTION

~26~

CHAPTER 3 — The big picture story of the bible

RESTORATION

Just as the Bible’s metanarrative is one of “creation – fall – redemption – restoration”, the farmer’s meta-narrative is the story of winter, spring, summer, and fall. It’s vital that a farmer understands the season that they are in so they know what to do!

1. Winter 2. Spring 3. Summer 4. Fall Farming is arguably the most commonly-used metaphor found in scripture: 1. Father as gardner 2. The seed as the Gospel 3. The harvest as those who believe 4. Pruning as a form of growth 5. Fruit as example of the Holy Spirit As you prepare to tell your story, let the power of the metaphor inspire you!

THE PERSONAL BIG PICTURE What season are you in right now? (Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall)

~27~

STORY TELLING by Season Bowers

What is the theme of your story?

FURTHER STUDY AND EXPLORATION Books: The Action Bible: God’s Redemptive Story (Action Bible Series) by David C. Cook (Author), Sergio Cariello (Illustrator), Doug Mauss (Editor)

Movies: Toy Story 3

Website: www.ted.com, Andrew Stanton: the clues to a great story, Ted 2012

~28~

4

JESUS AS STORYTELLER

“He told many stories in the form of parables…”

Matthew 13:3

STORY TELLING by Season Bowers

THE CREATIVE GOD-HEAD God is creative. According to this11 definition, “Creativity is the act of turning new and imaginative ideas into reality. Creativity is characterised by the ability to perceive the world in new ways, to find hidden patterns, to make connections between seemingly unrelated phenomena, and to generate solutions. Creativity involves two processes: thinking, then producing.”

1. It was the Trinity – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – that together, out of the overflow of their love, created the world and all that is in it. a. Our world’s origin was love, and it took a complete Trinity to produce the result. b. Each member contributed, but each person of the Trinity reflects the nature of the others. c. It is vital that we understand the creative inheritance that we receive so that we can reproduce it.

“Creativity is a combinatorial force: it’s our ability to tap into our ‘inner’ pool of resources – knowledge, insight, information, inspiration, and all the fragments populating our minds – that we’ve accumulated over the years just by being present and alive and awake to the world and to combine them in extraordinary new ways.”

Maria POPOVA, Brainpickings

‫ ארב‬Bara (Create) THE FATHER OF CREATION All creation and production finds its origin in love. It was love that motivated God to create. It was love that brought forth life. The Father is the origin of that love.

1. Gen 1:28 – Created to create

2. 1 John 3:1 – We look like the Father

3. John 15:1-17 – The Father cultivates creation

~30~

CHAPTER 4 — Jesus as storyteller

4. James 1:17 – Everything good comes from the Father

YOU ARE CREATIVE 1. Have you believed the lie that you’re not creative? a. From the moment we are born there are forces that work to either cultivate and stimulate your creativity or to stifle and stop it. b. Your creativity is a direct reflection of the Father’s love. i. This is not to say that your talent is a direct reflection of God’s love. Creativity and talent are not the same thing. c. Gen 1:27 – We are creative beings because we are made in the image and likeness of God – Creator God. HOLY SPIRIT INSPIRATION The goal of the Spirit is to create movement. When the Spirit moves, things change. The ideas and motivations to change flow from the love of God in the person of the Holy Spirit.

1. 2 Cor 3:17 – “Now the Lord is Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom” 2. It was that Spirit that was with Jesus in His lifetime, and also that same Spirit that came in Acts 2. The Spirit comes with great power and that power is for you! a. Gen 1:2 – Spirit was present in creation b. John 14:26 – Spirit is motivated by love to help us c. Rom 8:26 – Spirit strengthens us d. 1 Cor 3:16 – Spirit is always with you e. 1 Cor 2:10-12 – Spirit reveals all things to us 3. The Holy Spirit is inspiration! a. The wind of the Spirit blows. It is not linear. It moves, flows, rushes, gently stirs, shakes, and sometimes it hovers. b. Our job is to recognize the neverending powerful source we have access to and tap into it! The key is to understand that we cannot tame it! ~31~

STORY TELLING by Season Bowers

JESUS THE STORYTELLER The Word became flesh. There is a reason that the world was spoken into creation. Words have power.

1. Jesus used His words to teach, call, and free those around Him. He rebuked the enemy, He corrected misinterpretations and captivated everyone whether they liked Him or not. a. John 1:1 – Jesus is the Word b. John 1:1 – Jesus was a truth-teller c. Matt 13:34-35 – Jesus was a master storyteller Jesus is arguably the greatest orator of all time. He captivated thousands – without amplification – for days at a time. His words were so impactful that they were immediately retold, memorized, written down, passed down for generations, and used as examples in just about every society and culture.

THE PARABLE Jesus often used parables – stories with a point – to impart information and inspiration. These parables were always intended to make the listener lean in. He wanted those with ears to really hear. Jesus left no scraps. Each detail in a parable is a revelation of God’s character and leads us into a greater truth of the life of a Christ follower.

1. The parables of Jesus are almost exclusively found in the synoptic gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke), although the book of John does indeed record Jesus often speaking in metaphors and figures of speech. a. While it is not documented exactly when Jesus began to use parables to teach, it is pretty clear that He began to use them only after He was condemned by the Jewish leadership. b. It was quite possibly the opposition of the religious leaders that motivated Him to adjust His approach to narrow in on those who were open-hearted and interested in receiving the truth.

~32~

CHAPTER 4 — Jesus as storyteller

GROUP ENGAGEMENT As a group, select a parable. Read it to yourselves first, read it out loud at least twice, and then identify everything that stands out to each person. Break your chosen parable down as much as possible. Identify as many specifics as you can and be aware of what sticks out to each person in the group.

Parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37)

Parable of the ten bridesmaids (Matt 25:1-13)

~33~

STORY TELLING by Season Bowers

Parable of the tenants (Mark 12:1-11, Matthew 21:33-46, Luke 20:9-18)

Parable of the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-:31)

~34~

CHAPTER 4 — Jesus as storyteller

Parable of the talents (Matt 25:14-30)

FOR NEXT WEEK Who are the characters in your story?

~35~

STORY TELLING by Season Bowers

Create a character breakdown.

FURTHER STUDY AND EXPLORATION Music: Tommy – The Who

Movies: The Shack

Art: Prodigal Son (Rembrandt); The Washing of the Feet (Tintoretto, Jacopo Robusti)

~36~

5

DISCOVER THE STORY OF YOUR LIFE

“The shortest distance between two people is a story.”

Patti DIGI

STORY TELLING by Season Bowers

MAPPING THE SET-UP In the story of your life, you are the hero. Do you know that? We often negate the power we’ve been given and say things like: 1. God is in control

2. My life is boring

3. I’m just passing through / NOTW

4. What else have you believed about your life?

The truth is, you carry so much possibility! You’re the hero of a great adventure story and the power to change the world exists in you! That power is the awesome love and presence of the Almighty Living God! When you understand the story you were born into and begin to partner with the Lord, you will discover that your story has unlimited potential. ~38~

CHAPTER 5 — Discover the story of your life

THE BACK-STORY As your ancestors navigated their lives and passed on their genes, experiences, successes and failures, a story has been woven and spun; your entrance on the scene marked the beginning of something new. It is important that we hold our back-stories in tension with our God-given creative power; this means that your back-story does not dictate your path, but it does establish what elements you are working against and what inheritance you are working with.

1. Back-stories don’t dictate the outcome of your story. They are intended to set it up for something grand.

2. Jesus’s life is an example:

What led up to your big entrance?

1. People

a. who you came from is a vital part of your story

~39~

STORY TELLING by Season Bowers

2. Events

a. what has preceded you?

3. Location

a. where your people come from and where you begin informs your story

4. Catalyst a.

how you came to be is not an accident – knowing more about it helps you understand your story

~40~

CHAPTER 5 — Discover the story of your life

GENOGRAM A genogram is a pictorial display of a family line. It illustrates not only the lineage of a family but can depict relational and situational dynamics as well as all manner of traits and distinctions that one would want to trace.

Jesus may be in your blood, but grandma is in your bones!

LECTURE NOTES

~41~

STORY TELLING by Season Bowers

IN-CLASS ENGAGEMENT (a genogram key will be distributed in class as a hand-out) You’re going to create your own genogram. There is no right or wrong way to do it. Simply map out your family as best you can: 1. Beginning with both sets of grandparents 2. Include your parents and their siblings 3. Include yourself and your siblings (if any) a. If you are married, include your spouse b. If you have children, include them as well 4. Use the key to identify the traits of each person and their relationship to those around them.

This is purely for your benefit – please do not become overwhelmed or discouraged. This will be a very enlightening tool for you as you understand your background and the story you’ve entered into.

• I bless you to discover the beauty of your story.

• I bless you to take authority, to bind the efforts and break the chains of the enemy.

• I bless you to loose the blessings and goodness of the Lord over your current generation and all future generations.

• I bless you to become the hero in your story!

~42~

CHAPTER 5 — Discover the story of your life

YOUR STORY IN FOUR ACTS While it’s true that the stories of our lives could fill many books, it’s also vital to be able to point to the major moments that tell the meta-narrative, just as we saw in scripture. Use the spaces below to think through and identify these moments in your life.

(Note – this is not where you write your biography.)

Creation – your birth story

Fall – when did brokenness enter the picture?

~43~

STORY TELLING by Season Bowers

Redemption – when did you encounter Jesus?

Restoration – how has that encounter changed your life?

~44~

CHAPTER 5 — Discover the story of your life

FURTHER STUDY AND EXPLORATION: Music: Cat’s in the Cradle – Harry Chapin

Book: A Million Miles in a Thousand Years: How I Learned to Live a Better Story by Donald Miller

Movie: Little Women, Father of the Bride

Website: www.heresjesus.com

~45~

6

DREAMING AND PLANNING: THE STORY YOU WANT TO TELL

“There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.”

Maya ANGELOU

STORY TELLING by Season Bowers

GENOGRAM RESPONSE 1. What were your discoveries?

2. Was the process encouraging? Frustrating? Depressing?

SO, WHAT NOW? Looking back is a great way to start moving forward. You may or may not be satisfied with the story your life has told up to this point. Now the real question becomes: what is the story you want to tell?

REWRITTEN – PART ONE The story you were born into is an ongoing tale. We’re all familiar with the scientific law that states every action causes a reaction. Your arrival on the scene was orchestrated for a purpose. It is a catalyst for a reaction, and your life has the power to change the story that has been written by your family line for generations.

What is the storyline in your family that you would like to rewrite?

Declare it so, in Jesus’ name!! ~48~

CHAPTER 6 — Dreaming and planning: the story you want to tell

REWRITTEN – PART TWO If you’ve made a life changing connection with Jesus, it has been just that – life changing. Jesus is notorious for changing lives with one encounter. Matthew, Peter, Paul, Mary, and countless others have had their testimony – the story of what happened when they met Jesus – printed in Scripture for all to see. So, how did Jesus rewrite your story?

WHAT IS YOUR TWO MINUTE TESTIMONY? 1. Before: What was your life like before you met Jesus?

2. Encounter: What was it that led you make the decision to give your heart to Jesus?

3. After: Now what is your life like?

BEFORE

ENCOUNTER

~49~

STORY TELLING by Season Bowers

AFTER

REWRITTEN – PART THREE Now that you understand the power of Jesus to rewrite your story, you can revisit the big question: “What is the story you want to tell?”

~50~

CHAPTER 6 — Dreaming and planning: the story you want to tell

THE REWRITING WHAT-IFS What if my dreams are too big?

1. What lie are you believing about God? 2. What wounds are you operating in?

What if I don’t know what I’m supposed to do?

1. The enemy often attacks the very place that reveals your God-given calling/identity.

2. Where do you find yourself struggling against the enemy?

How do I know if this call is from the Lord?

1. A counterfeit or incomplete calling is rooted in your natural, easy gifting. It often leads to quick elevation and a hard fall.

~51~

STORY TELLING by Season Bowers

Are you willing to sacrifice it to follow Jesus?

1. Matt 19:20-30 – Rich young ruler

WHAT IS THE STORY THE LORD WANTS TO TELL 1. Local – your story a. John 15:1-17 – Motivated by love and creation 2. Global – meta-narrative a. Romans 8:28 – Motivated by love and restoration The story of joy bringer

~52~

CHAPTER 6 — Dreaming and planning: the story you want to tell

STORY DEVELOPMENT – GOD USES ALL THINGS You may already know the story the Lord wants to tell in and through you – great! But if you aren’t sure, we can start with some basic tools to identify it.

What are you good at?

*Jesus was good at seeing what the Father saw, and listening to the Father’s voice.

What are you scared of?

*Jesus was afraid to die, but didn’t let that fear of pain stop Him. Where are the wounds?

*Jesus’ story is told through the scars in His hands, feet, and side, right?

What do people say about you?

*Jesus said, “Who do you say that I am?”

What do people come to you for?

*People came to Jesus for healing. ~53~

STORY TELLING by Season Bowers

FURTHER STUDY AND EXPLORATION: Music: Lose Yourself – Eminem (*strong language)

TV: This Is Us

Movie: The Blindside

~54~

7

PUBLIC STORYTELLING

“Maybe stories are just data with a soul.”

Brene BROWN

STORY TELLING by Season Bowers

DO YOU BUY IT? Do you want what I’m selling?

Whether we believe it or not, we are always marketing. We are telling a story and people either buy or reject it.

Whether you like it or not, you have a brand. People look at you and make judgements; put bluntly, they use the information that you present both consciously and unconsciously, to decide whether or not they want to buy what you are selling.

DO THEY BELIEVE YOUR MESSAGE? What message are you projecting?

1. All black clothes all the time 2. Gym clothes for all occasions 3. Sharp suit, expensive watch 4. The “leave-nothing-to-the-imagination” dresser WHAT IS A BRAND? 1. Brand = The sum of recognition. a. Good brands are i. trusted ii. quickly identifiable iii. valuable iv. inspiring v. attractional STORYBRAND12 Who are you trying to reach?

Each of us is uniquely created to reach a certain audience – to reach certain people. Those people are both your customer and the hero! They are the one you’re trying to reach.

What’s their problem?

1. They have one. It may be that they do not know it yet.

~56~

CHAPTER 7 — Public storytelling

a. External i. “I hate the dentist!” b. Internal i. Fear! ii. Internal problems are what external problems cause us to feel c. Philosophical i. The shoulds and oughts They need a guide That’s you (and ultimately jesus!). Whether you are branding a business, a ministry, or working on your personal public story, it’s vital to recognize yourself as a guide. Jesus calls us to make disciples, and people will follow you. They need to know you understand their fears and you can then express: 1. Empathy a. “I feel your pain.”

2. Authority a. “Because I’ve been there and come out on the other side, I know how to help you.”

Give them a plan While someone may listen to and be inspired by you, you will not have any traction unless you give someone a plan.

1. Process plan a. Define the steps. People want to know what to do next. i. Answer these few questions, make an appointment, and meet with an advisor ii. Worship, Connect, Serve, Influence 2. Agreement plan a. A clear list of agreements or commitments i. “In the name of God, I, (name), take you, (name), to be my wife/husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, until we are parted by death. This is my solemn vow.”

~57~

STORY TELLING by Season Bowers

Call them to action There has to be a line in the sand – a moment when someone decides to act. You can help make that decision by creating the opportunity for them to act.

1. Direct call to action a. Buy now, schedule an appointment, call us today, do you want to say yes to Jesus right now?

2. Transitional call to action a. An on-ramp, watch a video, introduction to some new information That result in failure – what if they don’t?

That result in success – what if they do?

WHAT IS THE STORY YOU WOULD LIKE TO TELL As you’ve discovered more about your life, the story in which you were born, and the power of your story, it’s time to step into it and tell the greatest story – a life lived in surrender and power for the sake of love.

Mission statement (for your life, marriage, business, etc)

Who’s your audience?

Sorry to disappoint you, but it’s not “everyone, everywhere”. Even Jesus has a target audience.

~58~

CHAPTER 7 — Public storytelling

What is it going to take for you to accomplish your mission?

You need to map out specific goals so that you stay on track. Jesus knew what He needed to accomplish so that we all could be free and nothing could stop Him from accomplishing that mission. Begin by making a list of what you need to start doing as well as stop doing.

Who is on your team?

Everyone needs a team! Even though He could have done it by Himself, Jesus had a team.

Community is vital to our success. Identify who you have on your team and who you need.

~59~

STORY TELLING by Season Bowers

FURTHER STUDY AND EXPLORATION: Book: Building a StoryBrand  by Donald Miller

Movie: The Lord of the Rings

Music: Fancy by Reba McEntire

~60~

8

STORYTELLING EXHIBITION

“Create those things where human protagonists relate to us, where the stakes and conflict grip up, and where the emotions move us. Craft those simple things, those glorious things, those things so often forgotten but so desperately needed. There’s no hidden or corporate meaning behind the word ‘story’. We know what they are. And we need to start telling them.”

Jay ACUNZO

STORY TELLING by Season Bowers

USE THIS SPACES TO TAKE NOTES, BRAINSTORM, AND DRAFT YOUR STORYTELLING PRESENTATION:

~62~

CHAPTER 8 — Storytelling exhibition

~63~

STORY TELLING by Season Bowers

CREATIVE OPEN SPACE

~64~

CHAPTER 8 — Storytelling exhibition

CREATIVE OPEN SPACE

~65~

STORY TELLING by Season Bowers

EVALUATION OF EXHIBITION

~66~

CHAPTER 8 — Storytelling exhibition

EVALUATION OF EXHIBITION

~67~

END NOTES 1. Campbell, Joseph. The Hero with a Thousand Faces. Princeton, N.J: Princeton University Press, 2004.

2. “Do-Re-Mi” by Richard Rodgers, performed by Julie Andrews in “The Sound of Music” 3. Koenig, John. “Entry on Sonder.” The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows. https://www. dictionaryofobscuresorrows.com/post/23536922667/sonder 4. Kluger, Jeffrey. “How Telling Stories Makes Us Human: It’s a Key to Evolution.”

Time Magazine. http://time.com/5043166/storytelling-evolution/ 5. Zak, Paul J. “Why Your Brain Loves Good Storytelling.” Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2014/10/why-your-brain-loves-good-storytelling; 6. Widrich, Leo. “The Science of Storytelling: Why Telling a Story is the Most Powerful Way to Activate Our Brains.” Lifehacker. https://lifehacker.com/thescience-of-storytelling-why-telling-a-story-is-the-5965703 7. Digh, Patti. “Four-Word Self-Help: Simple Wisdom for Complex Lives.” Skirt!, 2010.

8. Jabr, Ferris. “The Story of Storytelling”. Harper’s Magazine, March 2019. https:// harpers.org/archive/2019/03/the-story-of-storytelling/ 9. Oldford, Scott. “Manipulation in Marketing: How It’s Used, and How to Use It Ethically.”

Entrepreneur, October 2018. https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/321611 10. Wax, Trevin. “The Counterfeit Gospels: Rediscovering the Good News in a World of False Hope.” Moody Publishers, 2011.

11. Naiman, Linda. “What is Creativity? (And why is it a crucial factor for business success?)”. Creativity at Work. https://www.creativityatwork.com/2014/02/17/ what-is-creativity/ 12. Miller, Donald. “Building a StoryBrand: Clarify Your Message So Customers Will Listen.”

HarperCollins Leadership, 2017.

STORY TELLING This course will lead you to discover the power of storytelling - both in the past and in the story you are telling now - and help you create the story you want to tell in and through your life, ministry, or future business endeavor. You will gain the confidence and clarity to see what the Lord has been doing in your life, and then choose to partner with Him in that creative process.

Through biblical study, examination of and reflection on your life, and dreaming with the Lord for your future, the goal of this class is to equip you to tell the best story well.

KEY OUTCOMES  To recognize and understand the power of storytelling and its place in history and culture  To understand the meta-narrative (the big-picture story) of the Bible and how it affects us  To gain awareness of your own personal story and the work of the Lord in your own life in order to be able to communicate it clearly (1 Peter 3, “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.”)

 To discover the storylines and roles that have shaped you  To recognize the use of story in media and marketing and develop the skills to tell the story of what is in your heart (ministry, business, creative endeavor, etc.)  To practice by telling the best story well through understanding, memorizing, and presenting scripture in various creative ways  To help others tell their story well to the glory of God

SEASON BOWERS Season is a pastor, radio host, author, speaker, wife, mom, and Joy Bringer! After spending over 30 years as a professional performer on the stage (from the time she could walk) the Lord called her into fulltime ministry. Season is passionate about releasing freedom and joy to the glory of God. As a radio host, she can be heard on 102.5 The Vine in southern California, Joy 99.3 in West Michigan, and her daily Joy Bringer radio feature can be heard on radio stations all across the country.

Season has her Masters of Divinity from Bethel Seminary, and is the Pastor of Communications at Centerpoint Church in Murrieta CA. She dreams big and prays even bigger. With big faith, Season and her powerful husband Kris are always ready with a yes to whatever and wherever the Holy Spirit leads. While full of life and joy, she also is almost always full of iced tea.

C E N T E R P O I N T S C H O O L O F M I N I S T RY

PRICE: $20.00