God: What you're doing right now is you're trying to play God in certain areas of your life than for me to BE God over your whole life.
Man: I did not say that!
God: It's what you meant.
Man: Yes it is...It's hard to talk to you, I mean you know everything I'm thinking...
What makes a story great? Drama, humor, thrill, suspense...These qualities separate a mediocre tale from THAT fishing story that your grandpa tells. I mean, would you rather hear about the relaxing day on the boat where fish kept stealing your bait, or the 27 pound bass that broke the line, tipped the canoe, and nearly drowned your uncle who wouldn't let go of the fishing pole to save his life? OF COURSE, the second one! An ability to create a vivid scene for a listener in an imperative for a skilled communicator. Deep down, we all want to be heard, and for some, the only way to be heard is to build a story that is larger than life.
I come from a family of men who are skilled in the area of communications...specifically story telling. My great grandpa Barnes could make you feel like you were walking right next to Jesus. It is rumored that kids from up to miles away would ride their bikes to the porch of my great grandpa Groves' house to hear his evening story. Down the line to my grandpa Groves, my father, and to me this gift was passed. A good story is told with expression, vocal inflection, posture, body language, and most importantly....DETAIL! I would like to nickname this ability: "The Fishing Story Complex."
In Acts chapter five we find two people who have come up with the ULTIMATE fishing story...or so they thought. We find Ananias and Sapphira in the midst of a time of revival. People are selling entire pieces of property, all their earthly possessions, everything, and donating it to the church. Ananias and Sapphira definitely want in on this action! They find a possession of great value and sell it. Their plan is to keep back part of the money, but make a big show of "giving it all" to God. There would have been NOTHING wrong with keeping back part of the money. The problem came when their hearts were filled with deceit and pride in wanting to present a false balance to God. So, God killed them.
Like I mentioned earlier, I have been blessed and cursed with "the fishing story complex." It takes little to no effort at all for me to create a scene that will have you on the edge of your seat ready to take action. Telling a story for entertainment is one thing, but I allowed it to slowly creep into my regular conversation until it nearly compromised my integrity. We are no different than Ananias or Sapphira. Our pride preys upon our words which slowly creates a net that we will inevitably entangle ourselves in. We get so preoccupied in exorbitant detail that we even attempt to play this trick on God. But God knows the thoughts and intents of the heart.
What may seem to be "just a fishing story" at this time will without a doubt develop into a lifestyle of deceit. You won't even see it coming. I have watched it envelop the lives of people very dear to me, and I nearly drowned had it not been for a couple lifeguards along the way. God knows everything we are thinking. To attempt to sway God with our verbal skills is a pointless endeavor. He is a God of truth and transparency. Let us begin our journey toward truth with being honest with ourselves, with our God, and with our neighbor. It won't be so hard to talk to God when what we are thinking is what we say.
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