I have had many positive and affirming responses to my messages since they have taken on the form of storytelling rather than preaching. Sure there have been those one or two folks who consistently ask me after my message “You didn’t tell me what I’m supposed to do,” and for those folks it may become harder to pay attention to my messages without me spoon-feeding them. But I sense that this is a direction worth moving toward… no longer a preacher rather a storyteller. And let me tell you it is an art form that takes some practicing.
One of the books that I’ve read recently really spurred me into this mentality. Mark Miller’s book, "Experiential Storytelling" highlighted some interesting points such as:
"A sermon tells people what to think. A story forces people to do the thinking for themselves. It can feel dangerous because it allows for interpretation… can we leave something open–ended knowing the conclusion might not come until later that day, week, month, or even year? Can we allow people to own the stories? Or do we do all the interpreting and leave nothing to the imagination?"
Maybe these are the times that we live in. Most people in our congregations (in my experience) don’t know how to use their imagination when it comes to faith and the church. They would much more opt for the lecture, so we pastors have had to become “Answer Men/Women.” Man, how much easier school would have been if my teacher gave me the answers! I might have actually had fun. Well I suppose if that is all the church is… fun or a social club then I guess giving answers only fits the mold.
I am witnessing a revival of sorts for the use of the arts in worship and communication and I am elated! I think that what happened around the time of the Reformation, a shift occurred in which the reading, preaching and hearing of the Word of God sub sequentially annihilated all art, image, and anything else that dared to take attention away from the former. Check out what the 18th Century theologian Jonathan Edwards had to say about the imagination.
It is quite clear that we need to rethink our manner in which we bear the Gospel message. The emerging generation will not stand for an institution (albeit the church) in which art/image/story is seen as a distraction to the Word of God. It only enhances it, if we are only willing to use our imaginations (see Luke 18:17)!
March 31, 2006
March 23, 2006
Why preaching no longer works
Here's an article that got me thinking more about how we preach and why we need to reform our mentality of preaching.
Quite simply, preaching can no longer be about someone standing on a stage giving expository advice to a clueless audience. Rather, it must become a living story again. For the most part, Jesus' method of conveying a message or point is through the power of story or parables.
Maybe we should start to do the same.
March 17, 2006
No John Deere required
As we are less than a month away from Easter, I am finding the story of my life to be a lot like the one Anthony De Mello told in his book, “The Song of the Bird.”
A man who took great pride in his lawn found himself with a large crop of dandelions. He tried every method he knew to get rid of them. They still plagued him.
Finally he wrote the Department of Agriculture. He enumerated all the things that he had tried and closed his letter with the question: “What shall I do now?”
In due course the response came: “We suggest you learn to love them.”
A man who took great pride in his lawn found himself with a large crop of dandelions. He tried every method he knew to get rid of them. They still plagued him.
Finally he wrote the Department of Agriculture. He enumerated all the things that he had tried and closed his letter with the question: “What shall I do now?”
In due course the response came: “We suggest you learn to love them.”
At last... the World Series!
I am a huge baseball fan as many of you know (Go 'stros! Go Reds!) and I have been following the World Baseball Classic this month. It has been interesting to watch. I always wondered growing up why it was called the World Series since it was always played in the U.S. between U.S. teams. I understand that for the better part of the first half of the 20th Century that baseball was predominatley an American sport but it is clear now with Mexico eliminating the U.S. that the sport can no longer claim to be American... it is a global sport much like soccer. Ok, not the best comparison at least when it comes to the crazy fans. I, for one am glad to see that we are embracing more of the international flavor in baseball and hope that the WBC emerges as something much bigger than most people give it credit for.