Knows There Is Power in a Good Story

When I was a little girl and I would go in public with my daddy whether it was to church or the grocery store or wherever, I never had the fear of being left. I always knew where my daddy was. You see, my daddy is sanguine by nature, and when two or more are gathered in his presence, there he has an audience…and he is “on.” I always knew where daddy was because there was a crowd around him or the volume was louder where daddy was. I have heard his stories for YEARS, and I still crack up laughing every time. They never get old to me.


Some of my favorite stories are of the stupid stunts daddy would do to try to impress the girls at college. On more than one occasion when he was at the gym at Northwestern he would attempt to do daring feats on a trampoline or some other gymnastic equipment, only to find that when he came too the girls had gone, and he had invariably done something to knock himself out.

Last time we dug deeper in the Word of God, I asked you to read it like it was the first time you have ever read it and to ask questions who, what, when, where, and why. If we read His Word as if it is the first time, every time I guarantee His Word and the stories it contains will never get old to you either, and remember to start with a time of prayer.

This week we are going to look at Acts 16:16 through the end of the chapter. Please take time to read through this and practice what you’ve learned so far. Read it from several translations. Does a term remind you of another Scripture or story in the Bible? Check it out. Do the work. Write it in your journal.

Now that you’ve got the basic done, let’s read it remembering God’s Word is His love letter to you. It’s personal. Read it using your imagination – use your senses. What would you have seen? What would you have felt if you were Paul and Silas, the jailer, the other prisoners, the girl with the spirit? What would you have heard? Tasted? Sensed? What is impressed on you the most? What does God want you to personally get out of this Scripture for you to use today, this week in your life?

Then I want you to write down a version of this story that you can use to minister to someone who has been in jail. I want you to write down a version of this story to minister to someone who has been beaten and battered by the world.

Stories are powerful. They have a way of teaching a point without preaching at someone. I remember most if not all my daddy’s stories. I’ve heard them over and over, but he adds to them from time to time or leaves things out. I’m still captivated.

Let the Word of God captivate your heart, your mind and your imagination.