Telling God's Stories with Power
Listen to selections from the audio book.
AMAZING STORIES - Five storytellers tell how their lives were transformed through the oral Bible project. What do a village drunk, a terrorist and a young man dying of HIV have in common? For each, the power of God's stories—in combination with prayer—was amazingly transformative.
Introduction
Perhaps the best way of gauging the potential of a training program is listening to the stories of those who have been changed by it. The deep descriptions in these stories provide a window into the life of a village person, above all their fear of displeasing the spirits.
A Man Named Tuesday
The Kisku clan historically was the royal clan of the tribe's kings. His father was the tribal priest of the village, and since the office was hereditary, Mangal always knew he would be the next priest.
Tormented By the Spirits
War between the two tribes was everywhere, and Bilion and his wife and two little daughters had to leave their home and their small farm and run away for fear of their lives. Then their real ordeal began.
Village Drunk Becomes Pastor
Once he had a good job and even owned his own house and land. But alcohol had taken everything, leaving his wife and five beautiful children destitute, with no clothes or even enough food to eat.
No Longer a Terrorist
Some might ask if God can truly forgive someone who tasted the blood of his victims by licking it off the knife he had used to kill them. It would be difficult for any human being to forgive such horrific acts.
Healed of HIV
After a month in the hospital, the doctors said to his mother, "You can take him home or you can leave him here. It does not matter—he will die either way."
CHAPTER Telling God's Stories with Power
ONE
INTRODUCTION - the author describes his personal journey that eventually caused him to begin a search for a better way of communicating with his target group.
TWO
A WORLD OF ORALITY - the author addresses the pervasiveness of oral learning preferences among people worldwide, and begins sensitizing the reader to the distinctions between literacy and orality and its implications.
THREE
ORALITY IN THE BIBLE - showing that Bible cultures were primarily non-literate; oral systems used for remembering and transferring knowledge in three Bible eras: the Old Testament, Jesus' ministry and Paul.
FOUR
THE DEVELOPMENT OF BIBLICAL STORYTELLING in the modern missionary era, and some different models. A critique of literate approaches to biblical storytelling; the distinction between the two modes of thinking.
FIVE
THE EDUCATIONAL ROLE OF STORIES - how a narrative approach can be more effective than a schooling model, including its application to the multiplication of new churches.
SIX
THEOLOGICAL FOUNDATIONS OF STORYTELLING - how an experiential Christianity harmonizes with the cultures and worldviews of many oral societies. The concept of felt needs as an open door to people's lives.
SEVEN
THE STORYTELLERS - The storytellers learn to tell 101 stories from Creation to the Ascension by heart, equivalent to 65 Old Testament chapters and 800 NT verses.
EIGHT
THE STORY TRAINING - Description of how the oral Bible training functioned, the techniques that were used including the learning activities, story selection, story scripting, and story performance.
Biblical Storytellers
Training and equipping biblical storytellers in South Asia. More than 400 storytellers are presently sharing God’s stories in previously unreached villages.
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