Your Story And God's Story

Hello my brother; hello my sister, my name is Dean Davis, and this is a word of

encouragement for village church planters.

As you have gone to minister in the village where you are beginning to plant a

church that can multiply, I am sure that you have seen many negative

consequences of sin and separation from God. Yes, in every village we can see

glimpses of God’s goodness and love. But there is also evidence that people do

not know or respect God. In many places, this separation from God can be seen

by the number of men and women who frequently consume beer and other

alcoholic beverages to the point of drunkenness. In so many village homes

there is no peace. Wives gossip and speak badly about their husbands.

Husbands yell at their wives and physically abuse them. Children are often

afraid and worried.

This suffering and pain shows very clearly that people do not know the love of

God. As a village church planter, one of your most important jobs is to tell

God’s story. I want to encourage you to learn to tell God’s story from creation

to Christ in 10 minutes or less. Tell the story of how God lovingly created the

world and everything in it. Tell about how he created man and woman to have

fellowship with one another and with God. Tell about how our first parents

rebelled against God and turned their backs on him. Tell about the suffering

that came into the world. Tell this part of the story, even though it is painful

to tell.

And tell the part of the story about how God reached out in love to Noah and

Abraham and Moses. Tell about all that those people did to draw near to God

while living in a sinful world. Tell how God gave his law, but people disobeyed

it. Tell about sacrifices that the priests of old made to find forgiveness for

sins. Tell God’s story. Tell how, at just at the right time, God sent his son into

the world to live a life of love, to call all people everywhere to repent of our

sins and turn back to God. Tell about the work of the Holy Spirit and how Jesus

is coming again. Tell the big story of God in 10 minutes or less. And tell each

episode of God’s story briefly, truthfully and with passion.

When we tell God’s story, we bring hope to the village. Yes! When you tell

stories that clearly show both our human rebellion against God and the

consequent human suffering as well as the love of God who is like a shepherd

looking for lost sheep or a father waiting for a rebellious son to come home,

you bring hope to the village. When you tell God’s story, you light a candle.

When you tell God’s story you bring light to a dark place. You bring hope.

But don’t just tell God’s story. Tell your story as well. When you tell villagers

that there was a time in your life when you suffered and struggled and felt

hopeless or fearful, when you tell how Jesus revealed himself to you and gave

you hope, when you tell about your new peaceful, joyful, hopeful life in Christ,

you are a witness to the truth of God’s love. So tell God’s big story and tell it

well. But be sure to also tell your story. Because in the end, we learn that

each of our stories is a part of God’s big story. The God of creation, the God of

Adam, Eve, Noah, Abraham and Moses is our God too. He loves me and he

loves you. He sent his son to save us. So tell your story and tell God’s story. In

the end, they are just one big story that brings hope to people living in

darkness.

This has been a word of encouragement for Village Church Planters.

Be encouraged, God is with us!

#EncouragementforVillageChurchPlanters #TellGod’sStory #15SecondTestimny