Luke 8:39 - Tell Them Everything

"No, go back to your family, and tell them everything God has done for you." So he went all through the town proclaiming the great things Jesus had done for him.

Luke 8:39

This is what we see the man who had a legion of demons cast out of him doing in the wake of his miracle. The demons are cast into swine and fall off a ravine and die. The town is so disturbed by this miracle that they beg Jesus to leave. The one who was healed wants to stay with Jesus, but he obeys Jesus's directive to go tell others about what had been done.

His story is one that shook the foundations of what the people around him could understand. The idea of someone powerful enough to cast out demons they had long feared was terrifying. I can only imagine the responses to the man's story as he proclaimed it. 

Shock. Awe. Belief. Hope.

As believers, we may not have stories that are as dramatic as this man's life, but we do have our stories. 

They matter. 

Our job is to tell them with the intensity with which we feel them. We need to share the details of who we were before and who we are now and who we, with God's grace, may become. This is the kind of stuff that everyone on earth hungers and thirsts for - the idea that we are loved, that we can be redeemed.

Our prescribed "testimony" of date, age, and place of salvation is not bad, but it's not as moving or as compelling as our personal narratives, the ups and downs of our relationship with Jesus. We don't need to tell every gory detail we've ever experienced in our lives, but we do need to be real and honest.

The world is looking for someone or something to connect with, and stories are the absolute best. Especially the stories that are true.

Mark 8:2 - I Have Compassion

I have compassion on the crowd, because they have been with me now three days and have nothing to eat.
Mark 8:2

Yes, Christianity is a deep worldview that can and has been analyzed and overanalyzed ad infinitum, but in this scene, Jesus demonstrates his tender (and practical) care for every aspect of our lives. Here we have a window into his heart. The multitudes probably would have stayed to listen to him and to be healed at the expense of their physical well-being, but Jesus had consideration for basic human needs.

The people had a need. He filled it. 

In this case it took a miracle to feed everyone present, but for us to show this kind of love to the world, all we have to do is notice what needs to be done. Sometimes we make our life and witness so complicated when it is so simple. Most people in the world today, even people whose lives are devoted to philosophy and deeper thought, are not in a constant state of pondering the depth of the universe. They are living their lives in real time and (consciously or subconsciously) looking for something to fill the deep spiritual hunger inside them - to know that someone cares and that they matter.

Coming at people with theological guns blazing can be very offensive, confusing, or just plain irrelevant at the moment when people are hungry, tired, stressed, irritable, or distracted. Because of this fact, I have always been hesitant when it comes to immediately asking complete strangers where they think they would go if they die. Maybe they have considered this. But, hello, I'm a perfect stranger. How is that my business? In addition, I always feel so ... insincere? procedural? I know that I myself do not want to be someone that anyone checks off their list. 

But truly caring about someone and helping them is not offensive. Showing concern or offering to pray for someone conveys that I care, and it gives me the opportunity to build a relationship with others. If my motive is, plain and simple, to act like Jesus and care, I feel that I am doing right and building a bridge that may someday be strong enough to carry those weightier questions about ultimate truth and our final destination.

It's about trust. Jesus showed that he cared in a small thing, which helps me understand that he cares in bigger things. Enough to do anything it takes to redeem and restore. Since I am trying to be like him, I need to be more practical and let my behavior be suited to the situation. We are meant to sow different seeds to different people.

All this being said, I realize I do err a little too closely to the side of the statement: Preach the gospel at all times. Use words if necessary. I absolutely agree with that, but I'm coming around to the middle a little more. The words are necessary, but they have to be paired with authentic love and compassion.

• See also: God feeds us with deep compassion - I came across this blog when I was searching for a picture to go with mine, and I feel like this captures the essence of what I wished I had written, but I ended up going in a different direction.