“Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have…” (1 Peter 3:15)
Two legendary broadcasters say goodbye to their posts in the next week. Charles Osgood and his ever-present bowtie bids farewell on CBS Sunday Morning which only two people have hosted for 37 years, he for twenty-two and Charles Kuralt for the remaining fifteen. Planning to continue some of his other broadcast duties, he will likely use his closing line, “I’ll see you on the radio” as he signs off for the final time. Within a week, another staple of the microphone will leave his post after a remarkable sixty-seven years. Vin Scully will air his last play-by-play for the Los Angeles Dodgers at the age of 88. While he will no doubt reminisce, he will not miss a beat or fail to make a call of what’s happening on the field. Both men will be missed, for they went beyond what they were expected to do. Each in their own way were exceptional story tellers. They will be succeeded by others, but their poetic voices and reassuring presence will never be replaced. As with the down-to earth style of newscaster Paul Harvey, they will leave us wondering what chronicles might go untold as he did with the famous “Rest of the Story.”
Great story tellers share the human and vulnerable side of others. They do so in a way that engage the listener to identify with the character in a real way thereby eliciting an emotional, heartfelt or motivational response. One of the best storytellers was Jesus, who had His own style of presenting a lesson. “His disciples came and asked him, ‘Why do you use parables when you talk to the people?’ He replied, ‘You are permitted to understand the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven, but others are not. To those who listen to my teaching, more understanding will be given, and they will have an abundance of knowledge. But for those who are not listening, even what little understanding they have will be taken away from them’ . . . Jesus always used stories and illustrations like these when speaking to the crowds. In fact, he never spoke to them without using such parables” (Matthew 13:10-12,34).
Throughout God’s Word, the stories of individuals who struggled in their relationship with God are unveiled. There are few more life-altering than that of Saul who stated, “I used to believe that I ought to do everything I could to oppose the very name of Jesus the Nazarene. Indeed, I did just that in Jerusalem. Authorized by the leading priests, I caused many believers there to be sent to prison. And I cast my vote against them when they were condemned to death. Many times I had them punished in the synagogues to get them to curse Jesus. I was so violently opposed to them that I even chased them down in foreign cities” (Acts 26:9-11). One day on the road to Damascus, he met Jesus who asked why he was persecuting Him. Subsequently, the converted Saul became the great Apostle Paul. Jesus said to him, “For I have appeared to you to appoint you as my servant and witness. You are to tell the world what you have seen and what I will show you in the future” (Acts 26:16). Thus a new chapter in the life of Saul began, and his writings contributed to a substantial part of the New Testament.
We each have a story to tell, and until we take our last breath on this earth . . . ours is not complete. Your life journey is more than the family you were born into, how you were raised, or your achievements and experiences. It also includes the challenges and hard times you encountered along the way. They are the best part of your story. Chances are it was in one of those times that you first came to God, allowed the grace of His Son to transform you, or experienced a closeness with Him which you will never forget. Your story is unique, and as you travel down the road – you will find that He will intersect you with others whom He has prepared to hear it. “And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns” (Philippians 1:6). As we draw close to the final chapter of our earthly story, we can be assured that the theme of the next chapter will be that of a happy and joyous life that will have no end.
REFLECTION: David said, All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be” (Psalm 139:16). How much do we trust God to write a good life story? Do we believe that he cares about each and every paragraph in the narrative of our lives?
A NEW LOOKUP DEVOTION IS UPLOADED EACH WEEK. THE NEXT WEEKLY POSTING WILL BE ON SAT., OCTOBER 1, 2016. COMMENTS ARE WELCOMED.