(excerpted from free indeed: devotions for Lent 2017, Augsburg Fortress, Minneapolis)
The Creed: The Third Article
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting.
What is this? or What does this mean?
I believe that by my own understanding or strength I cannot believe in Jesus Christ my Lord or come to him, but instead the Holy Spirit has called me through the gospel, enlightened me with gifts, made me holy and kept me in the true faith, just as he calls, gathers, enlightens, and makes holy the whole Christian church on earth and keeps it with Jesus Christ in the one common, true faith.
To Ponder:
I hope you will go out and let stories, that is life, happen to you ... water them with your blood and tears and your laughter till they bloom, till you yourself burst into bloom.
-Clarissa Pinkola Estés, Women Who Run with the Wolves
Strategic storytelling:
The best stories bring about feelings of wholeness and completion, provide examples of love in various forms, or feature characters who overcome struggle. Stories bind us together and help us to see life in a different way.
The Hebrew scriptures contain stories of how God related to humanity through the person of
Jesus-Christ. Jesus was a strategic storyteller - a person who knows how to use stories to convey messages, evoke feelings, and compel people to act.
The Holy Spirit continues in this tradition, drawing out stories within us and others that point to who God is and what God desires. We are called to co-create, with God, stories of liberation, freedom, compassion - and ultimately love. In doing this, we become more fully ourselves and create
life-giving relationships that transform all of creation.
Prayer:
Holy Spirit, bring to life the stories yo have implanted so that we full embrace who we are and whose we are in faith. Amen.
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