First let me say that I’m sorry for the lack of blog entries lately…been a little busy. I don’t know that I should be taking the time right now, but when you have a buddy in Australia that keeps nagging/encouraging you, sometimes you just give in. Someday I’ll have to tell you about Corey.
Have you ever thought about the number of story lines of which you are a part? I know that may be a boring way to start a blog entry, but stay with me. Writers often refer to these as narratives. For example, here are a couple of stories in which I, like it or not, am a character.
I grew up hearing stories of my German Ritter heritage and the approximate time frame (1800’s) in which a Michael Ritter jumped on a boat and set sail to America. I love the story of my family. Roscoe Ritter once got too close to the railroad tracks so Great Great Grandpa Roscoe lived with one leg. Roscoe won the 100 yard dash in the first ever Special Olympics. No, that’s a lie, but you get the picture. This is my family. Ritter means “knight/horse rider” in German, so we either come from noble stock that fought in the Crusades or we raised ponies…I’m going with the former.
I am also a part of the American story, home of the red white and blue. I’m proud to be associated with George Washington and Abraham Lincoln. Perhaps a little American arrogance, but I get to call home the greatest country in the world. Home of Route 66 and apple pie, land of the free and home of the brave. As a white male I’ve experienced this country a little differently than, oh say, my African-American friends whose narrative is that of overcoming slavery and obtaining equality. But you get the picture, I’m an American and this is my story.
Some of you are with me in another story, the beginning of a new church called Oasis Community Church. Like all the other stories, I’ve already got heroes and people who have made sacrifices that later generations will one day appreciate. There will be stories told of faith and adventure. I’ve never been part of a book that begins with chapter 1 and page 1, but I trust the Author and am thrilled that along with everybody else I get to be one character involved in the victories that will be won.
This leads me to the larger story, which reminds me that Oasis is one letter on one page in one book on one shelf in one room in a massive library that is the story of God. I’m a part of a story that began with the creation of the heavens and the earth. Sin screwed up paradise destroying relationships with God and one another. We know this story. Abraham, Moses, Sinai, the prophets all help to define who we are as God’s people. It’s a story of a God who in His love made a way through His son Jesus, “born of the virgin Mary, crucified, dead and buried and on the third day rose again”…in the words of the Apostle’s Creed. The Father and the Son then sent the Spirit who has brought the resurrection life to all those who trust and believe.
A question I’m asking myself these days is, “Which story most influences my view of reality?” In other words, “What story is shaping my thinking the most?” Which begs the question, “What happens when these stories contradict one another, which story wins out?”
Suppose your family story is one of abuse yet you are now a part of the story of God where the people of God love their enemies. Will your personal story or your Christian story determine your actions and attitudes? I know I know, easy for me to say.
Here’s another one, what to do when other ethnicities move into the neighborhood or even folks from other religions! If Jesus were their neighbor, how would he treat them? Is that how I’m treating them or have I followed a narrative different than that of my Savior?
When we choose to seek our identity and understand the truth of ourselves from the Christian story, more so than our personal or American story, our lives take on a very different shape.
For example, suppose your family is going through a crises right now where circumstances have created emotional chaos. Life is hard for you. The spiritual leader’s job is to define reality in light of the gospel. Your job is to frame things so that others in the home move from panic to trust. In times of panic people compromise, they turn on each other…they are acting as if the story doesn’t include God because they are reacting more in the way they were raised than what scripture says. The spiritual leader shapes a new reality by reminding us of the truth…there is a God.
I don’t know. These are unfinished thoughts that I want to throw out there. What are some other ways in which you see Christians living out of the wrong story? Is your thinking shaped more on your family of origin, the American ways, or the story of God? What are your thoughts on this?
