Storytelling

All of these are ideas that I have used in various ministries over the years. I hope that these will help you to spread the message of Christ around the world. Everything here is free of charge. If you find anything you can use and would like to support Nailscars.com you can donate using the link in the navigation bar.

  • The Man Who Didn't Care: A Fairy Tale

    This is a simple story about a man who only cares what his king thinks about him. Most of us are dominated by the opinions that other people have about us, but if we could free ourselves from those opinions and only be ruled by God's opinion for us then we would find that we could accomplish amazing things. This story illustrates that in a sort of children's story fashion. It is a good story to print and place in the pages of a book and actually read it like "story time."

  • The Rocking Chair

    This is a story told in the first person about a man who watched his father restore an old rocking chair. I used it in connection with Ephesians 2:1-10. The idea is that God created us and then we chased after sin and destroyed his creation. Then God through Jesus restores us and gives us a chance at new life and God's purpose again. This story doesn't overtly preach that idea so some sort of debriefing will be necessary.

  • The Park

    This is a modern day fairy tale with a very easy to spot point. I used it in a sermon about the Curtain of the temple being torn. The sermon was about how we as Christians are actively trying to sew the curtain back up. We have been granted acess to God and now many times we try to keep everyone else out.

  • A Child of the King

    This is still a little rough, but it is my favorite story these days. It is a story about a little girl who is the princess of a country, but who acts like she isn't worth much. Her father, the king, comes in and reminds her of who she is and tells her to hold her head high. I think many Christians live their lives feeling worthless when they need to remember they are a child of The King.

  • The Lost Son

  • Michael's Gift

    This is a story about a young boy who gives up his birthday present so that his teacher can have a toy that she lost as a child. This is a longer story, but full of laughs and tears. I used it to talk about people who offer God only their leftovers. David said that he wouldn't offer God anything that cost him nothing. We should be the same way.

  • Ed and Sophia

    As all of my stories these days, this one is rough. I have plans to turn this into a combination story/drama where a narrator reads the story and other people act it out, but that will be for later. For now this is a story of a hidden gift. There are a couple of ways you can go with this. What I was thinking was to talk about how when we become Christians we get the Holy Spirit living inside of us. We may not look different, but we have power on the inside. As we live lives is that power our outside will begin to reflect the change that has already taken place on the inside.

  • Angela's Beach Trip

    This story is based on a little analogy by C.S. Lewis. Most people hear about the abundant life that God has to offer us, but we don't run after it. We look around at the world and can't understand that it can be so much better than this. Too often we refuse to follow God because we can't fathom a life other than the one we know. This story uses a little girls fear of the unknown to show that point. I love the last line "you're not even out of the car yet." I think there are times with God when I am all excited and God is saying "Just wait, there are even greater things coming."

  • David Comes Too

    This story shows how Jesus can set us free even though we don't deserve it. I am not a history buff so I play a little fast and loose with the facts. I want to say that I am amazed at what soldiers are willing to do for their country. When I think about it I can't believe we ask them to do the things we ask them to do. As it stands right now the story is a little top heavy. I am working on that. Also, I don't explicitly explain how Joshua's unit comes and gets them out, but when I presented the story I did say a little something about it. As always modify this to meet your needs.

  • Expecting Daddy

    This story shows the different reactions of two boys waiting for their father at a school play. It is a good beginner story because it isn't terribly long, but it has some great imagery. I used this story to show how most people show up to church and never worry about the fact that they don't encounter God. Many Christians go through their lives and never weep for the fact they they don't have communion with God.

  • Jonathan's Play

    This story is a simple one. It is about a young boy who, because he is a little different, doesn't want to get involved. An encouraging word from an adult helps him have the confidence to get involved. I used this story to encourage my youth to jump in and be a part of the Christian life. God is calling us to be involved in his adventure. We have to dive in and do it.

  • The Trial of Jack Pale

    There is an ancient question that gets asked in youth groups around the country that goes something like this, "If you were on trial for being a Christian would there be enough evidence to convict you?" This story attempts to take that idea and put a slightly different spin on it. The format came out of my desire to write some stories that rhymed that I could memorize and tell at camp-fires and such. This is the only one I wrote, and I haven't memorized it, but I think it does a good job of presenting the same old question in a new way.

  • David and Goliath

    This is an audience participation story about David and Goliath. It is taken almost exclusively directly from the NIV text. In this story the audience responds by yelling or moving when specific keywords are read.

  • Jonah

    This story is actually a audience participation skit. Before the story you select members of the audience to come on stage and help you out. Then you read the story and as you get to key places the volunteers act out the story. It is funny and fun, and a good way to get the audience involved in the action.