What does it mean to live in the Story?
I believe we are part of a story of life and death, hope and despair, fear and trust, sacrifice and selfishness. This larger Story of choices has a beginning and an end. It spans centuries and millennia, embracing kings and paupers and people like you and me and found in the Bible.
Ink on paper. No matter how often we open or don’t open the Bible, if we’re not careful, the printed words in this Book can be just that – words. If we aren’t vigilant, we can lose sight of the One who has breathed out the words on the page and the truths that embrace our lives’ details.
Whether we are aware of it or not, we’re a character in the Story. We ARE IN the Story. The words that tell OUR Story aren’t just static ink but living and breathing. They speak truth to our spirits about the true narrative we belong to. It encircles us with purpose, hope and vision as we look ahead to the pages of the Story that are coming.
How do we guard our hearts against missing the Story? How do we allow the Story to change us? How do we nurture the living truth in our hearts and being?
One tool we can bring alongside the printed Word of God is our imagination. Fashioned as bearing the image of our Creator, we have a mind that can create pictures and feel emotions with an imagination. When we enter into the Story with our imagination engaged, we “walk” and “smell” and “hear” and “see” the words we read and study. We become part of the Story and our imagination, guided by diligent study of what the Words say, becomes a gateway to our heart. The Rabbi’s Touch comes out of this desire. Find out more here.
There is also a strong connection between our imagination and metaphor. This connection is another tool that can nurture the truth in our hearts. Metaphor is a vivid tool that allows our imagination to speak. When we look at everyday objects or something in the created world around us, we can regard it as representing an abstract idea, a metaphor. When that abstract idea serves the purpose of bringing God’s word to life, this imagination act pours life into your heart. I believe that God loves metaphor and uses it to teach us about Himself, about us. Jesus used parables all the time, using everyday objects, to teach the mysteries of the Kingdom, a vital theme of this big Story.
Join me! Join me in using imagination and metaphor to grow in the journey of Living in the Story.
Annetta