Aug 26 2019 Acts 26: 1-23

When we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?

This morning, we read again about Saul’s conversion. How he’d been a persecutor of the followers of Jesus. In today’s telling, he reports that he even cast votes against them, when they were being condemned to death. He also reports that he pursued these Jesus-followers to other countries, just to persecute them. Earlier in the book of Acts, we hear that he held the coats of those who were stoning Stephen to death – Stephen the first appointed deacon. Saul is travelling and is blinded by a bright light. Many days later, the scales fall from his eyes, as he hears Jesus asking him why Saul is persecuting Jesus. He’s converted and changes his name to Paul.

In a short 28 chapters, the book of Acts covers approximately 30 years of the earliest church. During those short 28 chapters, Paul’s story is told three times, with the first time being the narrator telling of the event. The second two times are Paul telling others of his conversion story.

This morning, I’m thinking about the importance of our own personal narrative stories when it comes to our experiences of God, or our own ‘testimonies’. Personal testimony is a phrase used by many Christians to talk about their stories, but not used so frequently in my faith tradition. But whatever you call it, it’s important to tell our stories.

Presiding Bishop Michael Curry talks about the importance of evangelism, which is largely about telling our story, and listening to the story of another person. It’s through sharing our own personal stories, I believe that the Holy Spirit connects us with others.

So in the spirit of Paul repeatedly telling his, here’s mine.

I was at church, when a vibrant new diocesan leader was visiting and preaching. I had a ‘theophany’, or a visible manifestation of God. From the pulpit where the wonderful woman was preaching, I saw something that can only be described as a ‘whoosh’, come down the aisle towards me in the choir loft. As I looked around, no one else was looking at it.

A few weeks earlier, I’d scheduled lunch with my priest because I wanted to talk to him about my underwhelming spiritual life. I’d likened my relationship with God to an old married couple – rock solid, but kind of boring.

So I go have lunch with my priest, and he asks about my underwhelming spirituality. About that, I say.. And proceed to tell him about my whoosh. He responds that God has quite a sense of humor. I’d wanted him to explain it all to me, but alas, he said it was mine to figure out. Why then, why there, why me.

For the next few months, I’m looking all over for anything to give me a hint, about why. I couldn’t figure anything out. The same bishop who was preaching when this happened initially was coming back, and it was an opportunity to have my son confirmed upon her visit. Nothing else made sense, so I thought I’d reaffirm my baptismal vows at the same time my son was confirmed. Maybe she was the common thread. And besides, I could stand to reaffirm and recommit to those covenants I held dear, and do so at the same time my son was learning about them.

My son and I took the multi-week class, in preparation of confirmation and reaffirmation. The priest was talking about the various ways God calls us in the church. After describing the ministry of lay people, bishops and priests, he explained that if deacons had a motto, it would be that they comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable. Hmm. I thought. I’m good at that. Hmm. Hmm. I don’t really remember the rest of the class, as I was feeling drawn to everything he’d said about deacons. A few weeks later, I told him I thought maybe, possibly, perhaps, I should pursue being a deacon. He turned, and exclaimed, Of course, I was wondering when you’d figure that out!

Seven years, much study, and wonderful experiences later, I was ordained a deacon.

I’ve never had a visceral experience of God like that before, nor since. But it sent me on this wonderful journey.  If have a story, tell it. And listen to the stories of others. It's an unbelievable blessing, to share those intimate, God-inspired moments.