Ramblings - First published June 2021
Ramblings from David
June 2021
When is it the right time to tell a wonderful story?
Isaac Newton once said, ”In the absence of any other proof, the thumb alone would convince me of God’s existence.”
For those who are convinced of God’s existence, there is sometimes a story of amazing things and personal backgrounds of unique character. It is a mistake to believe that this is a reason to run out into the streets and tell all to whoever you meet; some things are private, some things are to celebrate, some things are best left unsaid. There can be wonderful stories which have emerged from the most unlikely of circumstances. Stories with amazing things that could benefit and inspire many. Is that a reason for the person who was witness to the journey to tell the story? When is it, if ever, the right time to talk?
With an appropriate audience it could always be the right time. A bad audience however may prevent the freedom of the speaker or even harm their ability to deliver the truth of their journey. This is in part due to the thought that a tale that is totally out of the ordinary is either a fabrication, exaggerated or just yet another work of imagination and deliberate coercion to manipulate gains. Concerns of fake news, fact checking and a purposeful dissection of a narrative can make the essence of a genuine story of wonder difficult to grasp. Not many stories have substance in the minds of people unless there are others they look to, telling the story with passion from the heart. This is not a fault of the people, it is just the way things are. That said however, what of stories of true wonder, if there is not an inner circle to then go out in good spirit to spread the benefit of what they know. To illustrate this, imagine if Jesus did not have 12 disciples and found himself as the only source to spread word of the events. Would anything have ever happened? How would he start to tell his story of wonder to anyone if all the audience saw was a bleating criminal sentenced for crucifixion?
The following are some ‘what if’ questions. Those of you who see, may see more than the questions.
If I told you I had a story of pain and tragedy to tell you – who would be interested to know? (Who wants to hear that… get plenty of that in the newspapers)
If I told you I have a story of wonder to tell you – who would be interested to know?
A person suffers a loss and injuries too great to bare. A temporary state of isolation while awaiting repair turns into a state of being when all the avenues that a person would expect to be available have been corrupted by crime. When no one is there with either understanding or capacity, what is there that remains in this world for that person? Where is the strength in someone's world when the truth which needs to be heard in the right places for resolution and liberation is repeatedly ignored – no hope, no future. Where does a person turn to when there is nothing in the society they once trusted?
Being saved by God. Never an ambition, but such a relief to find there is help. It washes away the deceit, abuse and indifference of those who have woefully failed in their promises and positions. Amidst what would be seen by most (possibly all) as a catastrophic calamity in a persons world, there is a peace and joy of knowing God in the World.
If I told you I had a story of pain and tragedy to tell you – who would be interested to know?
If I told you I have a story of wonder to tell you – who would be interested to know?
If a person tells you they flew high into the sky and raced with the wind, would the story be enough for you to grasp the moment or would you demand to see the evidence. What is the story without seeing first hand? A mere shadow, a work of fiction or a view of a wonder that will be cherished as an inspiration for your own moments? Is it the story alone that makes it great in people's minds or is there more that holds the story in a place, maintaining it as a wonderful thing?
If I told you I had a story of pain and tragedy to tell you – who would be interested to know?
If I told you I have a story of wonder to tell you – who would be interested to know?
Consider this. Just over a thousand years ago, the claim is the Crusades were attempting to rescue back the Holy Land from the theft it was perceived to have come under. The impact of the Crusades is not just an historical note but still continues to this day; as though the past has been transported from a time when there was real pain, to a time when there could be peace yet continues what was never resolved to the satisfaction of justice. Will there be an end to something that has no balance of resolution? What were people then, and people now, fighting about? A story of God? How can something that is beautiful be so distorted in the minds of many that the will to destroy and possess is used in the name of what is Holy to make gains of land and power.
The power of God. What rights does that give to man? Given strength and power over all, would a person choose to control, oppress and exploit or find the joy in walking on in peace, enjoying the wonder that is the World we know? The choices, your choices, do not go unseen. It is a measure of man on their journey; to a future where a flourishing joy is there for all, that can be grasped here today if the consciousness of the people of the time now, and through the ancestors, turns to see the beauty that is there for them individually and collectively.
If I told you I had a story of pain and tragedy to tell you – who would be interested to know?
If I told you I have a story of wonder to tell you – who would be interested to know?
The Normans invaded England and took the land. A thousand years on, as far as I know, there is no one trying to resolve an injustice with the Norman oppressors of the past. Times and attitudes have changed dramatically in the last thousand years. Would the lives of most in Britain be as comfortable as they are today if the country had not been victim to the invasion and the tyranny it was. Who are we to say. It is God who can see. The journey for some, and sometimes many, is not always easy but the destination is as certain as the falling water in the waterfall. It may smash into rocks, fall uninterrupted, cast shadows or make rainbows but all will find the way. For the many, things have changed to a way of living that is so feathered with the desires and wishes of the past, that all who have lived, would describe the time now as a miracle; as though heaven has descended to allow the wonder of living to be a joy to all.
Living in the modern day for many is like having all, and more, that would have been wished for in the past. Maybe it is familiarity, complacency or an inability to appreciate, that leaves the inner emotions of many lacking – lacking the understanding of how lucky they are to be able to look out into the world and choose from many things to do and enjoy. There are many to which living has become so comfortable, their ancestors would have never understood that the days ‘right now’ are not in constant celebration.
If I told you I had a story of pain and tragedy to tell you – who would be interested to know?
If I told you I have a story of wonder to tell you – who would be interested to know?
When is it the right time to tell a wonderful story?
Some stories are vast and complex. In themselves they may hold the fuel for the wisdom which exceeds the story from which new ways can emerge. With God at the centre of a story there is a sacred trust, encompassing more than just the journey of man. If you have a story of God that seems impossible to tell, stand firm in faith. Only God knows and only God will allow such stories to be heard and known.
Could you be told, and trusted, as respectful guardians of the narrative?
