Tell Me a Story: Finding God (and Ourselves) Through Narrative

by Scott McClellan

Conflict, properly framed, imbues us with perspective.

Telling your story in the midst of unresolved struggles—doubts, anxiety, and pain—requires a certain amount of conviction.

“There cannot be any ‘story’ without a fall—all stories are ultimately about the fall,” Tolkein wrote.

Church culture and our pride may both encourage us to downplay conflict in our stories, but we must resist.

Culture is, in some way, a collection of shared values and the communal expression of what we value.

people’s beliefs about the future shape the choices they make in the present.

Andy said, “hope is a good thing—maybe the best of things—and no good thing ever dies.”

In understanding what story (or stories) holds sway over a man’s beliefs about himself and his future, we find ourselves closer to understanding the man.

We’re not called to change the world, nor do we have the ability to change people. We’re just called to be witnesses. If enough people change so that the world changes, it’ll simply be in response to the Story being told millions of times by millions of relatively anonymous storytellers.

My belief is that storytellers who are convinced of the message and activity of the gospel choose imagination.