Perhaps you’ve heard the story of Vedran Smailović, ​“The Cellist of Sarajevo.” During the violent siege of his city in the 1990s, he played Albinoni’s Adagio in G Minor amongst ruined buildings, providing bread of soul for hungry fellow citizens.

In The Magnificent Story, James Bryan Smith references Smailović as an illustration of the power of beauty in the midst of suffering. 

(On YouTube I found an orchestra performing the song and have it on now. Quite palpably, I feel a tension I’ve been unable to shake or pray away today lifting off my chest.)

A great song or story has the ability to expand our narrow vision into a panoramic view. Rather than distract from our present situation, it gives us strength to move through it. 

And there’s no better story than the story of God making us, loving us, and becoming one of us that we might become more like him. Sometimes, though, that story is told in an incomplete or destructive or just plain boring way. 

On Tuesday, Trevor Hudson joins Carolyn Arends on a live webinar to talk about how to share the Good Story in a way that’s truly good. We hope you’ll join us.

Peace of Christ to you,