Skip to main content

I Didn't Need To Know What Was Going On

 Sleepovers were great as a child.

We would stay up late, tell jokes, eat delicious snacks, and have a great time.

One of my good friends, Dale, would have me over from time to time.  But the part I wasn't anticipating was how active his family was at Church.

Whenever I spent the night on a Saturday we'd pile in the car the next day and I saw things I had never seen before.

The first thing was Dale putting a quarter in a little offering envelope.  I was shocked that he was giving away his money.

Then we'd be at Church and I saw boys around my age wearing colorful robes and carrying candles.  I was sure they were doing something really important.

When I visited in December, Dale showed me his Advent Calendar.  Those chocolates looked delicious but he told me there was only one per day.

I share this today because these little moments shaped my faith - even though I had no clue what any of them meant.  If Theology is Faith Seeking Understand, faith comes first.  

Faith is ignited through experiences - and experiences are transmitted through stories.

I went through so many years when I thought I had to get my message just right before I shared anything with anybody.  But as I write down my own stories, I realize how important those moments were before I had any understanding.

More often than not, a person is not ready for deep theology, but your stories are always helpful because they connect with the other person give them a part of what was meaningful to you.  By telling stories, you're literally adding value to their life.

If you haven't already, be sure to like and follow my Facebook Page to keep up with the latest tips and tricks.  But most importantly, tell your stories.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A New Chapter: Putting Old Tools To New Use

 I've begun a new chapter in my life.  A few months ago my family moved to Cherry Hill, NJ after living in Norfolk, VA for over sixteen years.  My wife got a great call in Philadelphia, and I'm currently looking for my next call.  In the mean time I'm keeping busy. I decided to take my skills in Congregational Development and bring them to the online world.  I launched a Facebook page called Ministry Development , and I'm following Russell Brunson's model in Expert Secrets to reach as wide an audience as possible. My goal for this phase is to dedicate 2024 to learning, developing, and teaching the art of storytelling as a vehicle for sharing faith.  This is remarkably different from the idea that many people have in their heads.  In some quick Facebook polls, I found that many people fear sharing their faith for one of two reasons.  The first is that they have had bad experiences with evangelists in the past - the kind where someone would get in your face and tell y
Post a Comment
Read more

Setbacks, Disappointments, and New Opportunities

Yesterday I received a phone call I had been waiting anxiously for. It was about a job I had put in for - and I didn’t get it. The person delivering the news was kind, and even encouraged me to apply for another position that, in her opinion, was a better fit for me. It is a different kind of job, would require a decent commute, and I’m not sure I have it in me to enter another process right now.  This morning I got myself showered and dressed and put on my clericals. Even though I was home all day I wanted to shoot a video and hence the outfit. Somehow just dressing up had me feeling less dejected - like I still could do something I was proud of. I remember years ago when my dad was looking for work. Each day he put on a shirt and tie before filling out job applications.  After the video I scheduled some more content, opened up my notebook, and started working on my plan. The ideas began to flow, time seemed to flow by, and before I knew it I had a pretty great outline for a half day
1 comment
Read more

My Journey: How I got here

In the summer of 2023 my wife received a phone call, offering her a job as rector of Christ Church Philadelphia.  I was excited as the prospect of moving closer to family, it was a great opportunity for her, so we made the decision to accept.  After the goodbye tears at our old congregations we watched all of our belongings being packed into a moving van and made the trek up to the Northeast.  When we arrived and settled in to our new home I began looking for a call myself so we both could exercise our priestly ministries.  Then the responses started coming in.  “No, no, no thank you, no, heck no, this isn’t a good fit, no, no, no, and no.”  In between fits of rage and general despair I started to pray, “Okay God, here I am.  I want to serve and add value.  What would you have me do?” As one does when pondering, I distracted myself with Facebook.   An ad came up offering a free masterclass on how to earn a living online as a musician.   It looked intriguing, and I love playing music so
Post a Comment
Read more