If you are looking for a good book to have a quick overarching view of the story of God and life and the Bible, you can pause for a while and check out this book ‘The Heart of the Story’ by author and pastor, Randy Frazee. In 31 chapters, Pastor Randy shares like a story teller on the master plan of God unfolding in the lives of the Bible characters and in your own life. He brings us to understand the Bible in two perspectives - the Lower Story, the many stories of men and women interacting with God in the daily course of life. The Upper Story is God’s story, His plan in His great Sovereignty putting all things in place in the eventual end.
Tucked in some of the chapters, Pastor Randy shared some interesting stories to help illustrate the main point of the chapters. For example, one of them is the story of Johnny Lingo, a wealthy landowner who came to the islander Sam Karoo to ask for the hand of one of his two daughters. Instead of asking for the hand of the beautiful younger daughter, Johnny to everyone’s surprise asked for the older daughter. He paid Sam Karoo ten cows for her. He saw beyond her outward appearance and recognized the beauty of her heart and character. The value he placed on her true beauty helped her realize her true worth. So which Bible character is this story do you think it is illustrating?
In another chapter, Pastor Randy illustrates of a friend whose daughter delighted in receiving his dad’s letters while she was in college. When her dad quit sending her letters after she was married and family and career filled her life, she called and pleaded, “Daddy, please keep sending me real mail.” This story helps to point to the kind of real mail the early churches received from the Epistle writers, like Paul, Peter, James and John as compared to the kind of digital mails we receive nowadays.
This book is recommended for read so that we can understand how our daily life here on this earth (Lower Story) has meaning and purpose when we give thought to His daily presence with us and align our lives with His and our God’s great desire is to do life with us, now and until eternity (Upper Story).
