I heard a story today – did you?

Matthew 13:10-13 (The Message)

10 The disciples came up and asked, “Why do you tell stories?” 11-13 He replied, “You’ve been given insight into God’s kingdom. You know how it works. Not everybody has this gift, this insight; it hasn’t been given to them. Whenever someone has a ready heart for this, the insights and understandings flow freely. But if there is no readiness, any trace of receptivity soon disappears. That’s why I tell stories: to create readiness, to nudge the people toward receptive insight. In their present state they can stare till doomsday and not see it, listen till they’re blue in the face and not get it.

I have been reading Matthew too, just like I have asked everyone to do.  I like to read the Bible a chapter at a time, so I don’t read Matthew for 2 minutes a day.  So even thou I have encouraged everyone to read at least 2 minutes a day, I tend to read for a bit longer.  I have been reading other passages and books so as not to get too far ahead of the reading schedule.  Last night I read Matthew 13, just to keep up with you all.  Wow, I was not expecting to get hit over the head to write a blog, but there it was - “Jesus – why do you tell stories? … Jesus said he told stories to create readiness and to nudge everyone toward receptive insight.”  WHAT?  I know I haven’t written in several weeks.  I haven’t even looked to see if anyone left any comments.  I had writer’s block.  You know - the excuse someone uses to say they can’t imagine what to write about.  I mean, how do I thru this writing of mine keep you all encouraged to seek God by reading the Bible? This teaching task set before me feels quite large and OVERWHELMING. So here goes – what God laid on my heart last night. (And I hand wrote it out w/ pen and paper – you know the old fashioned way). 

SIDE NOTE: I tend to write when things strike me.  It isn’t easy teaching thru blogs.  I am a teacher who had enjoys teaching in front of a class room with interactions.  So I encourage you all to interact with me and each other.   Please post a comment! 

THE STORY: How do you tell gossip from fact?  You see I can tell you here how to better understand a passage in the Bible, but how do you know if I am presenting God’s meaning true to the Spirit?  You see I may present the facts or I could twist it and make it Gossip.  How will you know the difference?  The same applies to sermons on Sundays.  How can you tell if the messages are fact or gossip? You see I can share thoughts and insights on scriptures here in this blog – but I want EVERYONE to not rely on my “hearsay” and to become familiar with God and God’s message.  How?  You must become familiar with the Bible – the only true piece of evidence we have to help us understand God’s love for us.  The Bible is the only true way for us to understand the true meaning of how God has sought each of us out for a personal relationship with God.  I have a goal – to equip everyone who will read my words here to challenge my words.  I want to encourage everyone not only to questions my words BUT to verify them and see if you agree using the Bible as your reference to defend your thoughts too. Re-read the passage above to see what Jesus is afraid may happen if He doesn’t nudge us.  It says we can state till doomsday and not see the truth of God and God’s message.  We can listen to sermons and others thoughts about the Bible and God and not get the truth.   What is this we are to “GET”?  What is it we are supposed to be seeing and hearing?  Why is it so important that we get it?  Do you even know where to go to hear or see what Jesus was talking about?  If you read Jesus’ words in the Bible, if you read the Bible in general, what do you find?  What is this message we are to get? I have been reading the Bible since I was a kid.  I didn’t quite understand it for the longest time.  I knew God was important and God needed to be in my life.  I knew I needed to pray and seek help to get thru every day of my life.  But you see I was just a kid of 5 or 6 when I found God and realized God and Jesus’ importance in life.  I loved my first Sunday school class where I started to learn about God.  Then we moved and I hated Sunday school.  The class and the message changed somehow.  You see I wasn’t part of the “in crowd”.  That wasn’t right so I didn’t want to go to church any more.  Neither did anyone else in the family I guess, because we stopped going by the time I was 13.  I was 23 before I found God again.  Let me rephrase that.  I was 23 when I started to get past my basic understanding of God and Jesus and found LOVE.  God loves me unconditionally.  God has sought a relationship with me my whole life.  God has been beside me thru everything that has happened and will happen in my life.  God is here right now.   

Have you been hurt by “church” or church people?  Has someone put requirements on you that you can’t be saved unless you perform a certain way or conform to certain rules?  They lied.  There are NO RULES – JUST GOD!

• Read John 3:16.  God loves you so much God offered up Jesus as the tool to draw us to God.
• Read Romans 8:31-39 – nothing can every separate you from God.  No one can separate you, no entity can – NOTHING CAN – see I told you NO RULES!
• Read Matthew 22:34-40 – it shares what is important to God – to enter into a loving relationship with God and to love others as God loves me, unconditionally. HOW?
• Read Micah 6:8 –To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your GodRead Matthew 25:31-40 – offer food and drink to those in need, offer comfort, clothing and a home to those in need.

Do you see anywhere in these passages that you can’t be how God made you to be?  Do you see any rules saying you can’t get a divorce or be gay?  God says nothing can separate me from Him – so how can these things?  They can’t! What is your excuse this week to keep you from reading the Bible?  What is it you use to keep from seeking God on God’s turf (the Bible)?  You don’t read, then get the Bible on tape and listen.  You can’t here, and you can’t see – learn Braille.   You find the Bible a lousy read or confusing – why?  You don’t want to know about Love?  You don’t want to have to give up wanting to get even for some past wrong?  Or is it you don’t want to have to accept everyone for who they are?  Good, God, this would mean I have to stop and talk to the beggar on the corner and try to help.  Oh no God, don’t make me forgive the person who cut me off in traffic.  Please Lord; don’t make me have to love that worker at work that gets on my nerves.  But God, I don’t understand that weird kid in black, don’t make me talk to that kid.  Any of these sound familiar?   

I shall leave you with the lyrics to a song Amy Grant sang - “All I Ever Have to Be”. It’s about God and our relationship with God/Jesus.

When the weight of all my dreams / Is resting heavy on my head / And the thoughtful words of help and hope / Have all been nicely said / But I’m still hurting, wondering if I’ll ever be the one / I think I am - I think I am / Then you gently re-remind me / That You’ve made me from the first / And the more I try to be the best / The more I get the worst / And I realize the good in me is only there because of who You are / Who You are… / And all I ever have to be is what You’ve made me / Any more or less would be a step out of Your plan / As you daily recreate me help me always keep in mind / That I only have to do what I can find / And all I ever have to be / All I have to be / All I ever have to be is what You’ve made me

Be yourself today and challenge yourself by seeking God in the Bible, a book that was designed to help each of us to find God’s love for us.  The book that can help you be true to who you are. I promise I shall have more stories to come.

– Alyce

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