Story telling

I love a good story. One of the greatest joys in life is sitting down with a good book and escaping into the world that the author has created, especially if the story is one that is unpredictable and challenging and thought provoking. Yet what I love more than reading a good story is hearing a good story, especially other people’s stories. Real life stories from everyday people are the tales that really captivate me because through the stories of everyday people we can see the beautiful tapestry that God knits throughout our lives. And if there is one thing I have learnt over time, it’s that the greatest story writer of all is God.

In my work, I get the privilege to work with a large number of volunteers across Australia and New Zealand. I travel often to meet with different teams and when I am visiting with them, one of my favourite things to do is ask them their story; why do they do what they do? What bought them here? How did they encounter Jesus? While it takes some people time to open up, for the most part people are happy to share their story and can I say, as I listen to people share about their life and the events that got them to the very spot they are standing in, time and again I am left standing in awe of how God beautifully orchestrates events in our life to get us to where He wants us. And not only do these stories show us how loving and gracious our Heavenly Father is, they also encourage us to keep walking, to keep holding firm to the promises that God made to us because He is faithful.

A little while ago I was sharing at a conference and right before I was due to get up I felt led to share my testimony as part of my presentation. I quickly shifted my notes, got up and shared my story as well as what I had been asked to present and sat down. I didn’t feel anything at the time but once the break hit, people started to come up to me to tell me they were encouraged and inspired by my testimony, which is wonderful. Praise God! Then they started to share their own stories. Men and women were coming up to me throughout they day and sharing their God story. Stories of healing and divine redirection and impossible encounters and miracles. Stories of God reaching down and lifting people up out of their pit, of bringing the prodigals home and overturning court cases. So many stories that by the end of the conference, my heart was full and encouraged and expectant. I had planned to go to the conference and encourage and equip people yet I walked away more encouraged than when I walked in and with a smile a mile wide.

When life is hard, or good, hearing an everyday person, not a celebrity preacher or mega church leader, but an ordinary person like you and I share about the faithfulness of God in their life is encouraging and good for the soul. It is inspiring. Our stories need to be shared because our stories connect us. To each other. To God. To His people and to His Kingdom. And the beauty is that we all have a story to tell. You have a story to tell just as much as I do and they are both amazing, just in different ways. You may not have a radical conversion story or a story where God took you on a crazy roller coaster ride and that is okay. Your story may be one of steadfastness and faithfulness over a lifetime of following God and that story is just as important as the radical conversion or the crazy missions story because stability and faithfulness is exactly what somebody needs to hear about and see in action. Alternatively, you could be that person with the radical conversion story and that is also great because that could be exactly what the mother of a drug addicted son needs to hear; it could be exactly what helps her stay faithful in prayer knowing that at any moment God could radically change her son’s life.

Whatever your story may be, when we place it in God’s hand and share it to bring Him glory, it will be impact. Colossians 3:17 tells us that, “whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him’, and when we share our stories in His name, for His fame, people will be moved and lives will be impacted. So, what’s your story?


 Leila (Lays) Halawe is a Sydney based coffee loving nonfiction writer and blogger. She has published a short devotional, Love By Devotion, and shares her views on life and faith via her blog page Looking In. You can connect with her via Facebook at Leila Halawe Author and via Twitter at Leila Halawe.

Where is the Lord in our storms.

Awesome in power and beautiful with its lightning strikes when viewed on television. Fearsome in its savagery and destructive power when engulfed by it. Such is the paradox of the ‘beautiful beast’ called a storm.

The first recorded storm comes from the Biblical account of the worldwide flood in Noah’s day. The sign afterwards proclaimed a promise wrapped up in the first ever rainbow. In Scripture there are a number of rampaging ‘beautiful beasts’ mentioned. Most are associated with sailing. We recall Jonah but forget Jehoshaphat’s wrecked ships at Ezion-geber (1 Kings 21:48).

In the Gospels there are three specific references to storms and one in Acts. Each of them have an application to how our faith is tested and shaped by life’s storms. This is true whether we find ourselves in midst of a furious physical storm, an ethical, emotional or spiritual one.

Storm 1. Is mentioned in a parable by Jesus as He sums up the Beatitudes in Matthew 7. We all build our lives on some foundation, which Jesus classed as Rock or Sand. Both lives, depicted as houses, suffer the assault of the ‘beautiful beast’. In both houses fear would have been felt but only one would be destroyed. The life built upon the ‘Rock’ which refers to the Word of God, prevails. That doesn’t mean to say that there wasn’t damage or pain or fear to the life. No! What is being stressed by Jesus is the life is not shattered even though it had been battered.

Storm 2. In chapter 8 of Matthew there is the first mention of a storm. Those professional fishermen were unable to cope with its ferocity. A strange picture is presented by a sleeping Jesus in the midst of the boat being swamped. Many of us have found a  storm of life smashing into us and our voice being raised “Jesus, wake up!” Why did Jesus ask them what appears to be a silly question? He said “Why are you afraid, of you of little faith?” The implied answer is, no vessel can sink when the Lord is on board, awake or seemingly asleep!

Storm 3. In Matthew 14 is the feeding of the 5,000 men. Afterwards Jesus went up into the mountains to pray. The disciples took to their boat and merrily sailed away with warm and exciting memories. Evening darkness enveloped them and an unexpected ‘beast of a storm’ pounced. But there wasn’t any sleeping Jesus. He was absent. Why didn’t the Lord rush to their aid, for He could see their plight from where He was on the heights? How often have we wondered where Jesus is in the midst of our own ‘beast of a storm.’ Could one of His reasons be to teach us He is able to come to us ‘walking on the water’?  He is the master over the ‘beautiful, ferocious beast’ even if it is stirred up by the Devil. As with the fishermen so to with us, our response is a deeper faith and gratitude in Him.

Storm 4. This happened to Paul in Acts 27. Dispatched to Rome to be tried by Caesar the authorities ignored the season’s changing weather situation. It was approaching the time for the Euroclydon (northeaster) to arise and blow. It did!  The account shows the magnitude of the storm. Why did they suffer the fear, the loss, the harrowing of those fourteen days? Because of a fateful and rash choice. Why were all on board not killed? Because God had promise years before to Paul he would bear testimony to Jesus before Caesar. Because of that promise all on board the doomed boat were under God’s protection.

The reason for these accounts to be in Scripture is to teach us, warn us and encourage us to cling by faith to Jesus. He is the Lord over the storm. We live in an unstable world which seems to breed ‘storms’ of emotional, spiritual, ethical and relational categories. Jesus, through His word, wants us to be faithful in the storm, strong when the ‘beast snarls’ to cower us. He also wants us to be merciful when for no reason of our own we are caught up in the storm caused by others. Think of the testimony of the disciples to family and friends. Even when 'picked on' (in a friendly manner) by others about walking on water and then sinking Peter could reply "At least I got out of the boat and gave it a go!" Imagine the discussions Paul would have had with those who had been on board the wrecked ship.

Ray Hawkins Feb. 8th 2017.

 Ray writes Bible themed Devotions of 31 days. Subjects include Children, Dynamic Ageing, Marriage and The Warrior Lord's Sword. Check out his blog site  http://rayhawkinsauthor.blog.com.au

Abiding … not just visiting

Photo courtesy of Arvind Balaraman/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

My twenty-five-plus years in the Corporate world mostly reflected a life where I chased after my goals and fulfilled that sense of achievement that drives many of us men. Typically, my relationship with the Lord was one where I’d grab a few minutes in the Word prior to leaving home and then pray on the drive into the office.

Once I’d parked my car it was like I said to the Lord: “Thanks for that, Lord, I’ll see you back here in ten hours or so.” And off I’d go ready to dive into the rigours of the day rarely giving the Lord a thought. Or if I was feeling particularly stressed I might pop into the bathroom to have a quick chat with the Lord to seek His help.

I’d compartmentalized my life. I allowed (you kidding?) the Lord access to various parts of my life. Yes, I prayed, read the Word (well kinda) and went to church.

Then a few years ago the yearning in my heart for something more kept getting stronger. Until one morning I asked the Lord what He wanted from me.

“Ian, I want you to know Me!”

That almost floored me. I’d been a Christian for almost thirty years, the troughs in my walk definitely outnumbering the peaks. But hey, most of my friends were experiencing much the same.

So I asked the obvious question?

“How do I do that?”

The response was immediate.

“Read my Word.”

So that’s what I started doing. Every day. And I haven’t stopped five years on.

But I’ve learnt there’s more to it than simply reading it. Or listening to it. Or watching it.

And that’s one of the characteristics of what differentiates an abider to a visitor.

Speaking the Word

“Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.” (Joshua 1:8)

I love that image of keeping the Word on your lips. To do that you really need to have it constantly in your mouth like a piece of gum.

I’ve found the only way to do this is to actively memorise Scripture and use it in your prayers. 

Only two days ago I received the perfect example of its' power.

I stumbled across Ephesians 4:32:

“Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.” (NKJV)

Pretty simple. I’ve always thought I’m pretty good with being kind and tenderhearted but the Lord nudged me to pay more attention to the verse and commit it to memory. So I did.

The message at church that night was on the Beatitude: “Blessed are the merciful …”(Matthew 5:7). I’d recently studied the beatitudes and I figured this one came relatively naturally to me. The pastor emphasized how easy it was for us to find fault in others, to criticize and judge but a merciful heart is one that doesn’t seek to do such. It opened my eyes to another perspective on mercifulness that I hadn’t fully appreciated.

And my newly locked away memory verse kept floating through my mind as I jotted down notes to the sermon.

I went home challenged and within about half an hour of being home found fault in something Fiona did.

Don’t you love that? The first small test you get in obedience you get sprung!

Dorrrr!

We had a big day ahead the next day preparing the house so that our floorboards could be sanded and polished. I apologized to Fi and went to bed repeating, “Be kind …” and asking the Spirit to help me be kind and tenderhearted the following day.

I woke with that verse on my lips and repeated it throughout the day and we had a great day shifting the house around.

May I encourage you to learn a verse this week. Ask the Lord for one, if one doesn’t particularly come to mind.

And those of us who are experienced Scripture memorisers it would be a treat if you could share a little of your system for memorising.

Blessings for a special week ahead.

Ian Acheson is an author and strategy consultant based in Sydney, Australia. Ian's first novel, Angelguard, is available in the US, UK, Canada and Australia. You can find more about Angelguard at Ian's website, on his author Facebook page and Twitter