Yesterday a tweet from Rich Stearns (@RichStearns) of World Vision led me to daydream this conversation with Jesus:
ME: Jesus, if you were a novelist, what kind of story would you write?
JESUS: Oh, funny you should ask. I wrote this story with two of my relatives. [He winks, and hands me a book called "The Holy Bible."]
We'll return to this scene in a moment, but first I'll share the Stearns' tweet that inspired it:
Stearns calls The Story (published by Zondervan) the "narrative of God's relationship with his followers" and "a great overview of God's work." If you think this sounds like the Bible, I think you're mostly right. On the other hand, if the Bible doesn't seem like a coherent story to you, we've hit the point of my daydream.
For a whole heap of reasons it can be difficult to see the overarching story that runs through Scripture. And even if we glimpse God's story, it can still be hard to see what it means for our everyday lives. I'd wager this relates to Stearns' recommendation of The Story.
The Skinny on The Story
The Story presents God's story in one seamless narrative -- like a novel. The storyline is chronological from Genesis through Revelation, using verses from the NIV translation. Read Chapter 1 of The Story
I especially recommend The Story to you if...
- Sometimes you're unsure how Scripture relates to your own life, or...
- You love God's big story, and you're looking for a new way to engage with Scripture. Or...
- If you're curious about the Bible but find it kind of intimidating, or...
- To you the Bible feels like a puzzle, and you want to know more about how the pieces fit.
Beyond the Novel (The Story Music Tour and More)
The Story is a multi-part experience that goes beyond the novel. You can learn more at www.thestory.com but I want to give you a quick heads up on the music tour. Coming later this year, it will feature music inspired by The Story and performed by Stephen Curtis Chapman, Newsboys, Francesca Battistelli, Natalie Grant, Selah, and Anthem Lights. I'm excited that Zondervan is partnering with World Vision, Proper Management, WOW, and these artists to pull this tour together!
Most of the music tour details are still under wraps, but you'll be among the first to know more if you go Like The Story Facebook Page.
(-Adam Forrest, Zondervan Internet Team. This post does not represent the views of Zondervan or any of its partners and representatives. The writer's opinions are his own, and he's sharing them for information and entertainment purposes only. Whatever else an opinion would "be for" Adam doesn't know, but he's just saying...)
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