07/16 - Sharing the Stories

Sharing the Stories Psalm 145:3-7 (verse 3 cut off) "3 Great is the Lord! He is most worthy of praise! No one can measure his greatness...." Why we do the things we do... "Vacation" Bible School = A LOT of effort! An over-used phrase: "you planted a seed" "6 I planted the seed in your hearts, and Apollos watered it, but it was God who made it grow. 7 It’s not important who does the planting, or who does the watering. What’s important is that God makes the seed grow. 8 The one who plants and the one who waters work together with the same purpose. And both will be rewarded for their own hard work." - 1 Cor 3:6-8 NLT What are the seeds? Holy actions done in Christ's name that make memories ...and STORIES of the Good News of God's Love in Christ Old and New Testaments, and personal testimonies The Purpose of Church Filling ourselves with sacred stories to have the Mind of Christ Preparing ourselves for and facilitating ministries of service, so that we act as the Body of Christ Praising and worshiping (loving!) God, culminating in that Great Day in which we all rest from our labors and worship in His Presence Back to the Basics today... In our songs and confessions we have worshipped... In our participation and donation we have served Now let us share remember the stories... One Life Story, one Short Story, and one Parable (and how to read them) With EVERY story we are called to not just gather information, but to place ourselves in the story, see ourselves in its people A Life Story: Abraham's Journey of Faith Called by God Have I had a vision that others could not see? Along with his wife... Have I ever had to trust in another's plans, praying they're not deluded? failed to trust God Have I ever struggled to trust God, or tried to fulfill God's promise through my methods? Lot took the better fields. Have I ever been taken advantage of; have I taken advantage of another's good nature? Yet Abraham argued with God to preserve Lot's life. Have I prayed for a friend who betrayed me? Isaac is born, Ishmael and Hagar are cast out. Have I been betrayed, or the betrayer? God tests Abraham Have I trusted God in times of disappointment and anger? A Short Story: David and Goliath Goliath mocked Israel. Have I faced an impossible task? David could not believe it. Have I ever seen something others have missed, that seems so clear to I but to no others. Have I been impatient with another unjustly? When David offered to fight, king Saul gave David his own armor, but it just weighed David down. Have I been weighed down by others expectations of how things should be done? Or find myself saying, "but this is the way we've always done this!" One slingshot, and one stone to goliath's forehead, was all it took. In a moment of crisis, have I trusted God, and been delivered? Have I ever thought, "If I had trusted God, that might have been me!" Saul would soon become jealous of David. Have I done the right thing, won the victory, and been punished for it? A Parable: The Good Samaritan “Who is my neighbor?” Have I justified my behavior? “A Jewish man was attacked." Have I been injured by life? “A priest came along and passed him by. A Temple assistant walked over but also passed by." Have I seen others ignore my pain. Have I been to busy to see the pain of others? “A Samaritan came along, and felt compassion for him." Have I given extravagant mercy and grace, as was given to me? “Now go and do the same.” Have I heard the words of Jesus, and let them change me? Making the Stories Ours Wow preacher, I could have done that! But are we doing it? And not just on Sunday or during VBS... What are we? Someone has said we are the sum of what we've done (our memories). We are more than that! But there is something to learn here about the Gospel: If it is our memories that shape us and our memories are the pieces of our story then taking God's story into our heart shapes us into reflections of Him Let Us Make His Story Ours!!