Just Walk Across the Room
Week Three: The Power of Story
By Bill Hybels (edited and preached by Jack Grubbs)
March 2, 2008

This morning is the third message in our Lenten sermon series, Just Walk Across the Room. Last week we talked about “living in 3D”:
                    • Developing friendships … with all sorts of people, withered in all sorts of ways
                    • Discovering stories … remembering to keep the focus on the other person
                    • Discerning next steps … letting the Spirit guide our every action 

If you’re ready to communicate like a walk-across-the-room person, then today’s message is for you. Primarily, we’ll seek to answer these two questions:
                    • How do we talk about God in a way that’s full of clarity and passion?
                    • How do we convey our personal faith stories in a way that’s humble and interesting? 

Stories are powerful! We all love to hear and tell a good story. We remember stories. Our children love to have us read them stories. They can hear their favorite story night after night when we tuck them into bed.  

We each have two powerful stories to tell: God’s story and our story. The first is how we talk about God … explaining who he is and what he has done. The second revolves around how we talk about our personal experience with God … explaining the main thing he’s done in our lives. What is God’s story? What is your story? And how can you get them both told well? So well that your listeners walk away saying, “Now that I understood! That I enjoyed! That I crave in my own life!” 

God Has a Story. Learn to Tell It Well!
Last week, we discovered that after you decide to take a walk across a room, it’s important to focus on developing a friendship instead of saying your piece. It’s really important to discover the other person’s story instead of wedging your own agenda into the conversation. And it’s absolutely critical to listen for the Spirit’s guidance about appropriate next steps you might take to meet a need or two of the person you’re talking with. 

I have a hunch that once you commit yourself to all that it means to becoming a walk-across-the-room person—engaging with people, living in 3D, the whole bit—God is going to blow open some doors, spiritually speaking. He is going to give you an opportunity to say a word for him or tell someone why you started walking with him to begin with.  

In that moment, you will feel your posture relax, your shoulders loosen a little, your sweaty palms dry up … and you will say, “Oh, man, is that what you want to talk about? What a ball we’re about to have if you’re willing to go there! I’ll make this brief, but basically, here’s how I understand this stuff to work …” 

God has a story. A powerful story. And your job—and mine—is to learn to tell it well. 

What would you say if someone in your current sphere of influence were to come to you today and say something like this: “You know, we’ve been friends for a long time. And you’ve been really cool not to force your God-thing on me, even though you probably knew my life would be better if I’d give all that a chance. I just wonder if you could sort of explain the whole deal to me. What is it about God that so many people are attracted to? Is he really all that necessary in life?” 

There’s a tried-and-true way of explaining God’s story that you might consider committing to memory, if you haven’t done so already. It’s called “The Bridge”—many of you may be familiar with it. The Bridge is quite simple, really, but it is a powerful way to illustrate precisely what God—and his Son, Jesus Christ—did for humankind. 

The next time you find yourself in a delicate conversation where the person you’re talking to really does want to understand who God is and what he has done, grab a piece of scratch paper, a cocktail napkin or whatever, and ask their permission to sketch out this bridge. It’s an image they won’t soon forget, I assure you. Here’s how it goes. 

All right, for starters, we have to establish the reality of two beings: people and God.  Between people and God is a great chasm—a division that exists because of people’s propensity to rebel against God’s way and go their own way instead. The Bible calls this “sin.”

 The dilemma people face is that we want to get to God but know we can’t just leap over the chasm. So we try exerting human effort, hoping we can get the bridge built. In the end, we realize that all the human effort in the world will never be enough to get us to the other side.

 But thankfully, God sympathized with our dilemma. And because he loved us so much, he intervened so that we would have a means of getting close to him. His solution was to choose his Son, Jesus, to serve as the bridge.  

 If you remember nothing else about the bridge illustration, remember this: Christ came to earth to be our bridge, and whoever makes the decision to cross the bridge will live with God forever. The apostle John put it this way in John 5:24, “I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life” (NIV). 

Another simple illustration is called “Do/Done” and goes like this. Most of religion is about what we “do” to try to get to God (go to church, give to charity, treat people with respect, be honest) and while there is nothing wrong with these things, nothing we can do will make us good enough to get to God. Sin separates us. But God solved this problem because He loves us. You see, the story of Jesus Christ is about what God has “done” to reach out to us, forgive us through Jesus’ death on the cross and bring us into relationship with Him.  

Another way to explain our faith is to imagine that you and all your friends are going out to the Eastern Shore in an attempt to swim to Europe. We all wade out into the surf and begin swimming. Some of us are better swimmers than others, but I guarantee that none of us are going to make it to Europe. That’s what it’s like if we think we are going to live a life that is good enough to get to God and end up in heaven. Some of us will do better than others, but no one can make it all the way. That’s why God sent His Son Jesus to rescue us. 

You may choose to commit a different illustration explanation of who God is and what he has done, so that when the time comes that someone sitting across from you poses the question, you’re 100 percent ready to give a thoughtful answer. Whatever illustration you use, keep in mind the types of words you use: Humble words. Healing words. Wise words. Gentle words. Grace-filled words. 

Let your speech be well-seasoned with these things. You are not responsible for transforming a human heart … that is the role of the Holy Spirit. Your role, when prompted to do so, is to give a tender, thoughtful, clear, and passionate understanding of who God is, of what he’s done for each person who ever has or ever will walk the planet. That’s all. Nothing more, nothing less. 

You Have a Story. Learn to Tell It Well!
Not only does God have a story, which is what we just looked at. But you have a story as well. A powerful story. And your job is to learn to tell it well! Do you believe what I just said … that you have a powerful story to tell? 

In Mark 5 there is an account of a man who Jesus set free from demonic possession. You can read for yourself how tormented this poor man was. Jesus frees him from his spiritual oppression and we pick up the account when people from the village come to see what has happened.  

“When they came to Jesus, they saw the man who had been possessed by the legion of demons, sitting there, dressed and in his right mind; and they were afraid. Those who had seen it told the people what had happened to the demon-possessed man--and told about the pigs as well. Then the people began to plead with Jesus to leave their region. 

As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed begged to go with him. Jesus did not let him, but said, "Go home to your family and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you." So the man went away and began to tell in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him. And all the people were amazed.” Mark 5:15-20 

Rather than have the man come with Him, Jesus told him to go and tell his story. This man could speak from personal experience about what happened when he met Jesus. He didn’t have to talk theology, just share what the power of God had meant in his life. 

Not all of us have such a dramatic story, but that doesn’t matter. Every time Jesus Christ touches a life, it is a story well worth telling and yours is no exception. In fact, your story will connect with other people in a unique way. 

If you have come into relationship with God through his Son, Jesus Christ, then you have a wonderful, redemptive story to tell. Here’s why that’s true … Regardless how old you were when you came to faith, hopefully you were different before Christ than you are after Christ invaded your world with grace and mercy and love. And that’s about all people need to hear right out of the blocks … what you were like before you came to Christ. What the experience was like of embracing faith in him. And what you are like after that decision. 

Listen to the Apostle tell his own before and after story: “I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that he considered me faithful, appointing me to his service.  Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief. The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. 

Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners--of whom I am the worst. But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his unlimited patience as an example for those who would believe on him and receive eternal life. Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen.” 1 Timothy 1:12-17 

You’ll come across some great examples of well-told faith stories in the book Just Walk Across the Room that include: 

“I was striving … but now I’m at peace.”
            “I was self-destructive … but now I’m healthy.”
            “Guilty, but now liberated.”
            “Fear-stricken, but now confident.”
            “Despairing, but now hopeful!” 

Your own before-and-after doesn’t have to be more complicated than this. It just has to be simple, humble, succinct … and true. 

If you’ve ever been to a Chamber of Commerce mixer or similar business function, you know that you have a chance to give your 45 second-one minute introduction of who you are and why everyone should use your business. Sometimes this is also called your elevator speech, as if you were riding on an elevator with a stranger who asks, “So what business are you in?”  

Think of your before and after story in the same way. It doesn’t have to be long and involved. You don’t have to use large theological words to make an impression. It’s better to make it short and to the point and then see where the conversation goes from there.  

I have an assignment for you this week. I want you to write your before and after story in 100 words. That’s not an essay, its not even a page. One hundred words is a paragraph, just a few sentences. It can be challenging to pack all that content into a few words. I want you to boil it down so you could share it when the opportunity arises and hopefully open the door to further discussion. 

I’ll make a deal with too. If you will send your story to revjack@potomacfallschurch.org I will read it and give you feedback on it. And just so this is fair, I will send you my story and you invite you to share your impressions. This is not just an academic exercise or one more thing to do. You are crafting words that communicate the amazing things God has done in your life in order to introduce others to the wonderful God we worship. Remember, its only 100 words, but that short paragraph may help change a life for eternity. 

This is the short version of my before and after story: 

There was a time in my life when I really wanted to know God, but thought the only way I could do that was to live a good enough life to get into heaven someday. But I realized that I couldn’t live up to my own standards and ideals, let alone God’s. I felt hopeless and alone, wondering if my life mattered. Then I learned that God cared about me and sent His Son Jesus to find me. I couldn’t be good enough to get to God, so He came to forgive me. I’ll never forget when I first felt God’s love and forgiveness. I knew I wasn’t alone and that my life mattered to God."