The BEST NARRATIVE EVER TOLD
Our daughter gave us a gift, a journal of sorts, a place to record our notes, our thoughts, our high and low moments, as we walked our journey through our marriage. The book sits on my desk (the desk that sits in my dining room), on top of everything else, so I will remember to write. When we received The Story of Us, I asked my husband to record his words too, but he said, “You’re the writer, so I’ll leave that you.”
Earlier this year, near Thanksgiving, my husband said we should make a letter to send to family and friends, and when he said: “we,” I knew he really meant: “me,” so during a daily walk, I spoke and recorded my thoughts for the letter. Then I penned the letter, a rough draft of sorts, and then let it sit and marinate. Yes, I was trying to determine if the letter needed to be revised or shelved. Yesterday, I wrote the full draft and emailed it to my husband. His comment: You can do better than that, so I revised and then emailed the “better” draft to my husband. What came next was revision after revision after revision. I smile, knowing he is my loving critic.
Stories. We each have so many to tell. Should we voice them, write them, or keep them locked inside our hearts?
Well, the answer remains dependent upon the story. Today, I am choosing to write, to voice, to share a TRUE STORY & the BEST NARRATIVE EVER TOLD.
“Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city in Galilee called Nazareth,
(The Gospel According to Luke 1: 26-27 NASB)
to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph,
of the descendants of David;
and the virgin’s name was Mary.”
As with every story, there remains key characteristics:
- Setting.
- Characters.
- Conflict.
- Theme.
Setting—
“Now in the sixth month . . .”
The Bible speaks how this was the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, the mother of John the Baptist, who was sent by God as a forerunner, as a man who would prepare the world for JESUS.
“a city in Galilee called Nazareth, . . .”
Characters—
“the angel Gabriel . . .”
“was sent from God to a virgin . . .”
“a man whose name was Joseph, . . .”
“the descendants of David; . . .”
“the virgin’s name was Mary.”
Conflict—
“And behold,
(The Gospel According to Luke 1: 31 NASB)
you will conceive in your womb and bear a son,
[the angel Gabriel spoke directly to the virgin named Mary]
and you shall name Him Jesus.”
Plot—
“He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High;
(The Gospel According to Luke 1: 32-33 NASB)
and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David;
and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever,
and His kingdom will have no end.”
This is a TRUE STORY & the BEST NARRATIVE EVER TOLD.
When God spoke to Mary, like most, she asked: “how,” and in God’s power, the angel answered, telling her how the Holy Spirit of God would create a miracle within her womb. What is so wonderful is that MARY BELIEVED & TREASURED IN HER HEART all that was told to her.
Theme—
Then she did the most natural thing—She sang a song in worship to the LORD.
“And Mary said:
(The Gospel According to Luke 1: 46-48a NASB)
“My soul exalts the Lord,
And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.
For He has had regard for the humble state of His bondslave; . . .”
This is the Christmas story, one that is re-told annually across the globe. God entered the world, in human form, coming a babe born and laid in a manger, for there was no room inside the inn for his parents to lay HIM.
Year-after-Year—the BEST NARRATIVE EVER TOLD!
Year-after-Year—a TRUE STORY of JESUS!
As we share the story of Jesus, we must focus our minds, our eyes, our thoughts upon JESUS. Then, as we walk throughout our days, we must remember, there will be sorrows to endure and insurmountable struggles to walk through, but there will also be abundance. Just as Mary, we are to sing a song in worship to the LORD.
- We do not sing because we triumph over our sorrows.
- We do not sing because we surpass our insurmountable life-struggles.
- We do not sing because we live in abundance.
No, we do not sing a song for any of those reasons.
BUT—
- WE SING BECAUSE GOD IS PRESENT WITH US!
- WE SING BECAUSE JESUS IS EMMANUEL!
- WE SING BECAUSE THE LORD IS IN OUR MIDST!
“Shout for joy, O daughter of Zion!
(The Book of Zephaniah 3: 14-15b & 17 NASB)
Shout in triumph, O Israel!
Rejoice and exult with all your heart,
O daughter of Jerusalem!
The LORD has taken away His judgments against you,
He has cleared away your enemies.
The King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst;
. . .
The LORD your God is in your midst,
A victorious warrior.
He will exult over you with joy,
He will be quiet in His love,
He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy.”
- JOY is what we express toward God.
- JOY like Mary’s JOY.
- JOY is not dependent upon our circumstances.
- JOY is not dependent upon whether God will or will not take away our struggles or our sorrow
Because—
JOY IS DEPENDENT UPON WHO HAS GIVEN TO US HIS SALVATION!
&
JOY HAS A NAME; HIS NAME IS JESUS!
May we be faithful to share the BEST NARRATIVE EVER TOLD today.