Once upon a time, there was a woman in a hurry. In fact, she was late. Her husband returned home from work an hour and a half after his usual arrival, and she was ready to run out the door. They exchanged “hellos” and shared a brief embrace as she raced toward the car. As the garage door slowly lowered, she muttered a prayer just before turning up the stereo.
Ten minutes earlier, a few ladies had gathered around a table in an upstairs loft at a local winery. Great conversation & $5 Wineritas were quickly flowing. When she arrived, they playfully chastised her for being late, and then, anticlimactically, she promptly told them she could only stay for fifteen minutes. With disconcertion, they asked where she was headed. Sheepishly, she responded by telling them she was off to a Bible study. Immediately, the ladies’ looks of intrigue transformed into distrust as they commented on her dressy appearance and refusal to purchase wine.
“Oh…no…it’s not that at all,” she replied. “In fact, we’ll probably drink wine while searching the Bible and talking about life. I guess our ‘study’ isn’t exactly what you might normally think when that word is used. We are working through a book that’s helping us confront the feelings of anxiety we’re all battling, but the book is only part of an overall emphasis on confessing our struggles, encouraging each other, and discovering the way of Jesus together. You know, for the longest, I battled anxious feelings in regards to my health. I just knew I had a fatal disease, or some kind of health problem that would never go away. Even still, I struggle with these thoughts from time to time. However, with prayer, daily reading of the Scriptures, continual confession to my husband and trusted friends, and opportunities to share my story just like this, I am experiencing the transformation God longs to initiate and sustain within and through our very lives.”
“Whoa…” the group of ladies exhaled. They were captivated, inspired, and disheveled. “Ummm…I’ve never thought of it that way,” one of them said. “I struggle with that kind of stuff, too,” another one chimed in. “I would really like a community like that. Do you think maybe I could join you the next time you all get together?” the remaining lady asked.
As we go, we need to tell more stories. Maybe it’s our own story that’s very much in process. Maybe it’s the story of a friend who experienced instantaneous transformation. Maybe it’s the story of a trying relationship that’s in desperate need of reconciliation. Maybe it’s the story of someone working through stages of change. Maybe it’s the story of a farmer that had some seed. Maybe, as with all of the previous examples, it’s the ongoing cross-stitching occurring between the Story and our story. Whatever the case, as we go, we need to tell more stories.
Who knows how this story will unfold. Join us in prayer that these who have shown interest might become disciples of the King.
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