Maybe you have a friend, neighbor or family member you want to share the gospel with, but aren’t sure where to start. Well, you could just share the gospel! But, you could also spark their interest by sharing what we call “Jesus stories.” They’re, you guessed it, all about Jesus! What He did, what He said, and the stories He told. Sharing Jesus stories is a really simple and beautiful way to introduce others to the best things about Jesus - His compassion, His kindness, and His power. When we experience God's kindness through the person of Jesus, and see His ultimate power, it's much easier to want to put our trust in Him, and, as the Bible says, His kindness is what leads us to repentance, the key to salvation.
What's the Purpose of Storytelling?
You might be wondering why you should tell a story about Jesus, and that's a great question. My first thought is that Jesus told stories all the time! If He did it, it must be effective! He took real life examples, things that his audience would relate to, to explain to them spiritual things. Another reason why learning to tell good stories is so important is that God's heart is for all nations to come to know. In Matthew 28, He tells us to "go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation." But more than 700 million people in the world are illiterate, and require verbal communication to learn. Most of these cultures learn through storytelling, so if we want to reach the nations, it would be wise to get really good at storytelling : )
Even Harvard agrees that story telling is a go-to way to communicate information! Harvard Business put out an article in 2017 about why storytelling is so effective. In it, author Vanessa Boris stated that storytelling has aspects that engage auditory, visual, and kinesthetic learners, the three major learning styles. She described storytelling as a foolproof way to increase learning, as it’s easier to remember stories than facts. She backed this up with research showing that learners were 20 times more likely to learn facts and information if they were learned from a story! Jesus must have known this as he always used stories (or parables) to teach those around him! If you want to read the full article and learn more about the effectiveness of storytelling, you can find it here: https://www.harvardbusiness.org/what-makes-storytelling-so-effective-for-learning/
How to Tell Jesus Stories
Here’s the process:
First, pick your story. I’d start with something on the short side, just to get your feet wet. One of my favorites, and a simple one to learn, is the story of the woman caught in the act of adultery in John 8. Why I love sharing this story so much, and especially with friends of other cultures and religious backgrounds, is because women are often marginalized. They have no rights, or fewer rights than men, they’re punished more harshly, etc. And sharing a story of Jesus in all His compassion and mercy to the woman in this story, helps introduce the true character of Jesus to our friends and the women in our life. I also love this story, because it doesn’t just stop with women. This story applies to everyone we know! We’ve all been found guilty because of our sins, and we all need the grace of God!
Once you have your story, go ahead and read and reread the story.
Now, try to write down the story with as much detail you can. (Note** Don’t just memorize the scripture. Though, memorization of scripture is beneficial, it’s not the point in this exercise. Make your goal in this to be able to tell the story like you were there, like you saw it with your own eyes and heard it with your own ears. Engage your audience! Jesus is not dull :) )
Once you write down the story in your own words, reread the story once again and see how well you remembered the details of it. Make a mental note, or jot down anything you missed.
Now, say the story aloud. If you have someone with you who would like to learn the story too, or is willing to help you learn it, practice saying the story to them. Feedback is helpful! Maybe you forgot an important detail of the story, or maybe you need to work on having some fluctuation in the tone of your voice to make it more engaging. Whatever it is, try to have a mindset of receiving positive feedback!
Once you feel confident in your ability to remember and verbally tell the story, look for opportunities to share it!
How to Learn and Share Jesus Stories With Kids
It's so important to teach our children early to share their faith, and I love how simple sharing Jesus stories is to help them do this. Plus, they're amazing story tellers, as I'm sure you know! Some of my best tips for doing this with your children are to:
Go slow. They have great memories, but they're not likely to sit down for an entire hour while writing and rewriting scripture while they learn.
Break it up into chunks. I like to focus on one story for an entire week, doing a Discovery Bible Study (DBS) with them on Monday of the passage/story we're learning. You can read my blog post on DBS here. Writing or drawing a picture of the story on Tuesday, and practicing telling the story to each other and those who the Lord puts on our heart as the week continues.
Use pictures. Like I just mentioned, if you have little kids who aren't writing or writing well yet, or if they just have more of a creative brain, have them draw a picture of the story instead. You can do this too! Then, you can use your picture as a visual when you share your story too. Plus, it helps you commit it to memory.
Ask the Lord who He wants you to share it with. This is such an important step! It's great to have these stories in your pocket for the "right" opportunity, but it's even better to step out in faith right now with it. Jesus says that His sheep know His voice, and He does want to speak to us. He wants to work with us to bring His message of hope and restoration with the world, and one of the best ways we can do that is to listen to what He's saying, and then obey. So, after every new story you learn, I always recommend that you ask God who He wants you to share it with. Pay attention to who comes to mind, and then be faithful, and share your story with them : )
What Jesus Story Should I Learn First?
It doesn't necessarily matter which story you learn first, though I would start with something shorter while you get the hang of it. Matthew 12:9-13 where Jesus heals a man with a crippled hand or the parable of the man who found treasure in a field (Luke 13:44-46) are both short, and great, stories. This story in Luke 13 is also a great one to start with kids, because it's simple and makes their little imaginations come to life as they imagine what type of treasure the man in the story found! This is a picture of the story my son wrote when he was 4 years old, and I think it is pretty darn cute!
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