Sometimes trusting God with our stories is the most difficult work we can do. I shy away from conflict, so dealing with my problems and processing through how I’m feeling gets put on the back burner. It’s easy to float through life—right until it isn't. Eventually, the metaphorical deadlines creep up and I have to turn something in. I want to give God the best version of myself, but that’s not what grace asks for.
Read MoreTruth can feel terribly old-fashioned these days. Jesus made use of story to speak difficult truth in a way that could capture the hearts of everyone—the uneducated and those who were too educated for their own good. To both the first-century farmer and the modern businessman, the seed strangled by the weeds of worry is all too relatable. To the Pharisee and to the prejudiced, the good Samaritan exposes the ugliness that might be otherwise be hidden behind 10 dollar words. Children can understand stories. Grown-ups (like me) can endure their truth, which—in another form—I might easily reject. Because even where a story exposes my sin, there is something sweetly healing about the sting.
Read More“The seed that fell on good soil represents those who truly hear and understand God’s word and produce a harvest of thirty, sixty, or even a hundred times as much as had been planted!” Jesus’ voice rose as he ended his story with a burst of confidence and hope. Even I could feel it.
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