Sharing Faith Stories for Every Day

I love the cover of my newest book and am so excited to share it with you!

Finally, after MONTHS of waiting: It’s here! It’s here!

It looks more like a magazine cover than a book, doesn’t it? And as a book, it’s short–under 49 pages, so it doesn’t meet the UNESCO definition of a book. Yet it’s properly bound and carries an International Standard Book Number (ISBN) so it’s definitely a book according to Canada Post, and a welcome addition to my Published Books list.

Last November, I shared the vision for Sharing Faith Stories along with my working outline, and today I’m happy to share an excerpt from Session 3 – Sharing Faith Stories for Every Day.

Sharing Faith Stories for Every Day

From my husband’s work in narrative, I’ve learned that a story beginning in media res starts in the middle of the action. The Latin phrase literally means “in the midst of things”; so for example, an opening scene might be a rescue operation already in progress, and only later do we learn how the child managed to get trapped in the collapsed mine shaft in the first place. The middle of the action grabs our attention with its drama and intensity, and then the story gets filled in from beginning to end.

Sharing faith stories as part of everyday living also takes place in media res, in the middle of things. For example, one day I went to a new place to get my hair cut. I had never met the hairdresser before, so after exchanging pleasantries about the weather and about my hair, she asked, “What do you do?”

“I’m a pastor,” I said.

And she responded, “What’s that?”

We were definitely in the middle of things, as she was cutting my hair. It didn’t seem appropriate to share my whole life story at that point. But answering her question was definitely a story-telling opportunity, a chance to share a glimpse of what it means for me to be a person of faith, a slice-of-life short story instead of a whole biography.

So I told her about my work as a pastor to help people draw near to God–how that sometimes means praying, speaking on a Sunday morning, talking with children, or visiting someone in the hospital. I only had a few sentences before our conversation moved on to something else, and I never did get to fill in the story from the beginning. I only gave her a tiny piece of my story in media res.

In John 4, Jesus shares part of his life story with a Samaritan woman. He doesn’t begin with the words of the prophets who anticipated his coming, or with his birth in the town of Bethlehem. Instead, he tells his story in bits and pieces in media res, and his example suggests a few basic principles for how we might share our faith stories in the midst of everyday living.

That’s the end of the excerpt, but if you were to keep reading, this session goes on to explore Jesus’ example, and what we can learn for telling our own stories in the midst of everyday living. The six sessions of this Bible study guide include:

Session 1
The Power of Story

Session 2
Sharing Your Personal Story

Session 3
Sharing Faith Stories for Every Day

Session 4
Sharing Faith Stories in Words and Actions

Session 5
Sharing Faith Stories When It’s Difficult

Session 6
Sharing Faith Stories as a Community

To read the rest of this session and the rest of the book, get your copy of Sharing Faith Stories from Amazon, Herald Press, or your local bookstore.

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Writing/Reflection Prompt: Think back over your last week. What faith stories did you hear, or did you share? Was faith a natural part of your conversation? Why or why not?

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