In this week’s Monday Minute, Muriel encourages us to go tell it on the mountains, as she kicks off our month-long discussion about growing together to spread the Gospel.
Go Tell It on The Mountains
By Muriel Gregory
There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.
-Maya Angelou
Why don’t you tell me your story? How did you get here? How did God find you? If we could meet face to face, those are the questions I would ask you. Then I would sit back, take a sip of my coconut milk latte (two shots of espresso, no sugar, thank you), and eagerly wait for the answer.
I have traveled to many places. First, as a Navy brat with my dad, then as an army wife. I have met many people, and the truth is that I have yet to hear two stories that are the same. Each tale has a unique DNA, with its twists and turns. Each carries a flavor and each is woven into the bigger tapestry designed by God.
Your story and my story are intricately part of His story.
One of the biggest lies we tell ourselves is that our story does not matter. It bears no great achievements or revelation. The banality of our lives would not interest anybody. We do not have much to offer. We are nobody.
Look at it this way. If someone has a hundred sheep and one of them wanders off, doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine and go after the one? And if he finds it, doesn’t he make far more over it than over the ninety-nine who stay put? Your Father in heaven feels the same way. He doesn’t want to lose even one of these simple believers.
It is one of Jesus’ most heartwarming metaphors. Picturing him going after the one lost sheep is endearing and reassuring. We all need to know that level of love and commitment. The beauty of that story is that you are, have been, or will be that sheep one day. In a way, that story is your story.
Leslie Fields summarizes it this way:
“I was a nobody searching for God, for something real and true. And God found me. He left the ninety-nine sheep and came out into the woods, climbed that mountain, and found me and carried me home. I am the hundredth sheep. And you are the hundredth sheep as well. We were all of us lost, wandering, and God found us.” (1)
My “going home” story will differ from yours, but each story is an encouragement for someone who is still looking for something real and authentic. Anybody can deny or reject the truths in the Bible but not your story.
That is powerful!
I will share a secret with you. I have dark moments in my story. Events I would rather hide than share. Things that I am not proud of. Compelled by God, I have shared those moments. In complete vulnerability, I bore my soul and revealed those hidden secrets. What I found out is that I am not alone. Others have secrets, hurts, and dark places. When I opened up, they did, too. What we bring to light, God will redeem and use for good. In the process, he heals the other person and me.
Will you share your story? We grow together when we learn from each other. So go tell it one the mountains and anywhere else the military sends you.
Move Out
Read: John 15:26-27
Reflect: Jesus is talking to his disciples. What encouragement is he giving them? How will they bear witness about him?
Respond: As Christians, we have the Holy Spirit to guide us. Would you pray about your story? What is God encouraging you to share? With whom?
Prayer
Lord, your word tells us, “Let the redeemed tell their story.” I pray that my story will be an encouragement to someone else, and I pray that it will forever point to your redeeming grace. Amen.
Additional Resources
1. Fields, Leslie Leyland. Your Story Matters: Finding, Writing, and Living the Truth of Your Life (p. 3). The Navigators. Kindle Edition.
