Talking about TED
As the Communication in Ministry course glides midway in its third week, I remember the theme is, “what role do you believe story plays in ministry communication and how might you build stories into your ministry’s communication strategy?” The emphasis is storytelling.
The chapter we are reading in our text, Outspoken, by Shraeder & Hendricks, pp. 90-115 is entitled “Words and Stories.”
Everyone has a story. There is a story about just about everything. There are stories about food, drinks, cars, trucks, and M&M’s. I’m on the path toward a degree in Christian Ministry, and there is a story behind that, but I’m not going to tell it right now. Teased yet?
I get emails from a source called churchjobs.tv and at the bottom of the email there are some links to different resources. One of the links was to an article about TED. A gentleman named Todd Rhoades wrote an article asking the question, “What if our sermons were like TED talks?” Here’s the link: http://toddrhoades.com/what-if-your-sermon-was-like-a-ted-talk
Todd got the idea to blog out this question from another gentleman by the name of Eric Dye. Here’s his link: http://bit.ly/1D7GKX0 “If Sermons were like TED talks”
Have you ever watched a TED talk on YouTube? I have. I have watched several, and honestly they were all very interesting.
What is TED? TED is a nonprofit devoted to spreading ideas, usually in the form of short, powerful talks (18 minutes or less). TED began in 1984 as a conference where Technology, Entertainment and Design converged, and today covers almost all topics — from science to business to global issues — in more than 100 languages. Meanwhile, independently run TEDx events help share ideas in communities around the world. http://www.ted.com/
TED is a platform for ideas worth spreading. TED today shares ideas from a broad spectrum. Meanwhile, independent TEDx events help share ideas in communities around the world. http://www.ted.com/about/our-organization
Think about the rules of a TED talk:
- No talk can exceed 18 minutes in length.
- Speakers must tell a story or argue for an idea. They may not use the TED stage to sell products, promote themselves or businesses. Every talk’s content must be original and give credit where appropriate. Speakers cannot plagiarize or impersonate other persons, living or dead.
- Speakers must be able to confirm the claims presented in every talk.
What about this? Can we truly expound the Word of God in 18 minutes? I know there are many ways to preach or proclaim the Word of God, by topic, by subject, by Bible book, etc. Can you say everything about a passage of Scripture in 18 minutes? You may well be able to tell a story in 18 minutes, however, would we truly be feeding our flock on a diet of short bread? Should we feed growing disciples of Christ only the milk of the Word? What about the solid food of the Word? Check out what St. Paul has to say about it, “For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic elements of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food; for everyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is unskilled in the word of righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, for those whose faculties have been trained by practice to distinguish good from evil.” Hebrews 5:12-14 (NRSV)
Ok, don’t get me wrong, I believe in short stories. There are a lot of great short stories in literature. Maybe it would be good every now and then to give a short story, or short sermon, or a short message to get our point across. Maybe our message could best be told condensed or in a more concise manner?
Matthew 28:11-15 tells a short story of how the Roman soldiers were given money to keep their mouths shut about the resurrection of Jesus Christ. However, the short story had an ending that said, “So they took the money and did as they were directed. And this story is still told among the Jews to this day.” Matthew 28:15 (NRSV) The short story ended up being a story that is now told through the Scriptures, and we live in 2015 AD. Matthew was written at least in 60 AD. So, a short story can have lasting effects. Does this still give credence to an 18 minute sermon, homily, message, or word from the Lord? Well, I must admit it, yes. How could it be accomplished? I think the 18 minute sermon would have to be a story.
What about the Gospel story? Here is an example of short story. The Gospel in a little more than four (4) minutes:
In The Hands of the Refiner 