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Storytelling That Reflects Christ (with Brooke Kehl
3 Playsin 1 day
Why do personal stories have the power to move us?
In this episode, Brooke Kehl, of Eastern European Mission, explores why testimonies can be such a compelling witness to others. Hear how God is transforming lives, and how you can play your part in reaching those around you. Could a focus on mirroring Christ be the first step to unlocking new and surprising opportunities to share your faith? How might our own stories inspire and impact others, as part of God’s grand plan to reach the lost?
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Transcript
Introduction of Hosts and Podcast
00:00:10
Speaker
Well, hello, everyone, and welcome to another Pep Talk, the persuasive evangelism podcast from Solast. ah Thank you so much for listening. I'm Simon Wenham, your co-host, and I'm delighted to be joined by my other co-host, none other than Christy Mayer. Christy, how are you doing?
00:00:26
Speaker
Simon, hello. I'm doing well, and I'm very excited to be ah hosting this with you. I think this the first episode that we've shared together thus far. It is, yeah. and And I should also say congratulations, because a belated crew congratulations, because you have fairly recently finished a ph d So actually, I wanted to know, do you do you feel any wiser as a result of all your studying? No, I feel much more ignorant. And the Bible has passed.
00:00:50
Speaker
I still have some corrections to write up, but I'm very grateful to have gotten this far. So yeah, thank you very much, Simon. Well, congratulations. Yeah. And it's great to
Guest Introduction: Brooke Kale
00:00:58
Speaker
have you with us. So, and I'm also delighted to introduce our guest today, who is Brooke Kale of EEM, so Eastern European Mission. Brooke, how are you doing?
00:01:07
Speaker
I'm doing well. Thank you. I'm excited to be on the podcast today. Fantastic. it's It's wonderful to have you with us. And and that's not a Scottish accent. So um I'd love to hear where where are you
Brooke's Journey with EEM
00:01:19
Speaker
and where are you from? Can you say a little bit about, perhaps tell us a little bit about your background and also how you got involved with evangelism?
00:01:27
Speaker
Yes. So I'm actually in Vienna currently. We have an office here where where I work with EEM in Vienna. But I have been in Nashville, Tennessee for the last five years working from there.
00:01:40
Speaker
um But i I got involved with EEM about eight years ago. i was looking for different opportunities, different ministry opportunities. And i had a background in theological studies and communication and some background in public relations with internships and things like this. And so ah God brought about this opportunity to work with EEM and they were very focused on obviously Eastern Europe and beyond providing Bibles and Bible-based materials in different languages. So I was very drawn to
00:02:15
Speaker
the the mission and the purpose of this ministry. And so i went for it and I have not been the same since. And it's been a wonderful adventure to be a part of this ministry.
00:02:27
Speaker
That's so wonderful, Brooke. And I just, and all of that is just fantastic, but particularly the fact that you are in Vienna.
Life in Vienna
00:02:33
Speaker
I mean, that is just one of the best places in the whole wide world. I ask you, how do you find living in Vienna?
00:02:39
Speaker
I love Vienna so much. I've fallen in love. It does something to you, doesn't And people told me this would happen. Exactly. It does something to You never, ever want to leave. I know. Yeah, I was here for six weeks and then I decided to extend my stay for the full three months that I could without, know, going to do more visa stuff. So it's been wonderful. Yeah. Well, what a wonderful place to be able to work. And mean, as much as you could tell us many stories about Vienna, which I would definitely love to hear, maybe that's for later, but you describe yourself as just generally a storyteller.
Power of Storytelling in Evangelism
00:03:14
Speaker
I mean, what what kind of why do you think stories are a good way of you know talking about Evangeline? This was something that we we picked up earlier, kind of before the show started. So in terms of your work, how does storytelling...
00:03:27
Speaker
What does storytelling look like in your work? Is that key part of your work? And why do you think that's a good part of, you know, communicating who Jesus is if you do? Yes, I think it's such a key element to what we're doing because, you know, I think we saw Jesus do this a lot. He was a storyteller. He talked in parables. He spoke this way. um and And I think for our work,
00:03:52
Speaker
um storytelling is such a powerful way to express our testimony and our witness to other people to just um relay the power of God and what's going on in other people's lives and how God is moving in our lives.
00:04:09
Speaker
And so we found that, you know, sharing Numbers with people is important. That is a valuable aspect of what we do. Like we've done this many Bibles in this language at this time. All that's very valuable information. But we find that people really connect with story and with testimony.
00:04:30
Speaker
And so this has become something that I really focus on. It's my favorite thing to get to go um the field, meet people who are on the front lines of sharing the gospel or on the front lines of, um,
00:04:45
Speaker
providing God's word to people and hearing how it's changing people's lives as they encounter God through scripture. And um but it's just beautiful to see also how our partners, their testimonies have have led them where they are today, doing what they're doing.
00:05:02
Speaker
So when we share these kinds of things. I think it stirs the faith of our donors. I think it stirs the faith of anybody who hears these stories that God is up to something, that God is on the move.
00:05:15
Speaker
And he's using everyday normal people to accomplish what he wants done. And that is to rescue people back to himself through Jesus. Brilliant. Thank you so
Inspiring Story from Poland
00:05:27
Speaker
much. Well, that brings us on to actually the next question, the obvious question from that, which is, and are you able to share perhaps a couple of stories that you've encountered and and perhaps let us know sort of what that can teach us about evangelism?
00:05:41
Speaker
Yeah. So one of my favorite recent stories, i even, I went ah last week to Poland to meet a woman who worked in this monastery near the border of Belarus.
00:05:54
Speaker
And she had a mom and a dad come to her to ask if he would speak to their son, their younger son who had been diagnosed with cancer.
00:06:07
Speaker
And so she was able to spend some time with him. And she is she's very bold and ah very confident. And she handed their son a Bible.
00:06:20
Speaker
And he was like, i don't know if I have time to read this. I'm sick. And I don't know if I believe in this. And he had this kind of hopeless attitude. and she looked at him and she said,
00:06:32
Speaker
Your life literally depends on it. This is a matter of life and death for you. And I love that she said it this way. She said it in a loving way. And and she said it from a place knowing that she carries really the equivalent of the cure for cancer, but it's the cure for sin and death. And that is the message of Christ.
00:06:53
Speaker
and And she knew that so she could speak to him in such way. And he ended up reading the Bible and he became a believer a couple months later.
00:07:04
Speaker
And he was also eventually healed of cancer even a few months after that. So he is has been a testimony among his family and among his community. And it's all because she was very bold and confident and she knew what she carried and what she had to give to somebody in her partnership with God.
00:07:26
Speaker
So I love the story. I think it's it's just a very practical... we have the book of books and the message of Christ that has the truth for our lives. It has the truth for our identity in Christ.
00:07:41
Speaker
And i think knowing what resource we have and understanding the value in it really can help us and motivate us to share it in that way.
00:07:57
Speaker
youre enjoying today's podcast, would you carefully consider supporting the ministry of Solas? We do all kinds of work in evangelism and evangelism training and creating resources all over the UK, working with all kinds of churches to share the gospel.
00:08:09
Speaker
If you'd be willing to support us for as little as four pounds a month, we will send you two copies of our book, Have You Ever Wondered? One for you to read and one for you to give away to someone who isn't yet a Christian.
00:08:20
Speaker
Hop over to our website, solas-cpc.org, and look for the donate button at the bottom of the page. Thank you so much for considering supporting the ministry.
00:08:32
Speaker
And now, back to the program.
Cultural Context in Evangelism
00:08:36
Speaker
We featured Jason Lane who on on the Pep Talk podcast, and he does quite a lot of work in Eastern Europe as well. And was thinking in relation to the Bible, a major part that he emphasized was the importance of local context and understanding. I was wondering how receptive are people to receiving a Bible? And and i was wondering if you had any advice for and introducing people to the Bible in in our context as well.
00:09:02
Speaker
Sure, yeah. I think... we really like to depend on locals who well-versed in their own cultural context. So that's something we really value and that we work in 36 different nations. So I think it looks very different from country to country and region to region. And and so i think when it comes to knowing if people are, and if people are,
00:09:35
Speaker
going to be open to scripture, we we really leave that up to the discernment of our partners and what they see the local needs are. um And when it comes to, I think,
00:09:48
Speaker
discerning people's openness to receiving a Bible in our own context. I know for me, um that's just, that's also listening to the spirit in conversation. It's also just staying ready and prepared no matter what. Like I have a story where, you know, we do Bibles in several languages and I used to keep various languages in my car in Tennessee when Because I've lived there for the past five years and i was working with um some refugees from Iran and I kept a Farsi Bible in the back of my car. And I was just like, one day, you know, I may need this because this opportunity may arise. Yeah.
00:10:28
Speaker
um But I want to be not push anything on anybody. But if the conversations come about and the spirit leads, then I'm ready. And I have this resource to provide. And so I started i was teaching English and I started developing relationships. And sure enough, I got into a beautiful conversation with one woman who ended up being very open to the gospel and to wanting to learn more. And she had never seen ah the gospel in her language in Farsi. So I was delighted to be able to say in the middle of Nashville, Tennessee, that I actually have a Farsi Bible. and we can read it together.
00:11:09
Speaker
And it was the the perfect timing. God's timing was amazing. And it was just really cool to see that I think wherever you are, yes, it's good to be sensitive to your cultural context, but also that the spirit provides wisdom where you are. he knows where you are, and what you need and how to get it to you and how to help you and equip you in those instances. So anyway, yeah I love that story because it's just, yeah, it's just a way that the spirit moved when when there was a resource and the woman was open. My friend was open. So.
Sharing Personal Stories
00:11:45
Speaker
and And also what that ah story illustrates is the importance of preparedness. like you You had that in your bag, ready to share with someone else. um what What would your advice be to to those who don't think of themselves as evangelists? you know who might For them, they might not even think, oh yeah, maybe maybe I should have this with me and just in case.
00:12:07
Speaker
ah What would you say to those who who might... ah who might want to be kind of partnering God with his work in this way, but just wouldn't even think about these things? Yeah, I think you have to ask yourself, what has God done in my life?
00:12:22
Speaker
What kinds of things have I been saved from? um You got ah kind of look inwardly to think about the impact that God has had in your life. And I think a lot of where the opportunities arise To be evangelistic naturally, even if you don't see yourself that way, is just to tell your story and to tell how God has impacted, has saved you from your sin, saved you from specific things, has transformed your life.
00:12:53
Speaker
And this is what I would tell people who don't necessarily see themselves as evangelists, because i maybe don't see myself as someone who is just going to talk to everybody on the street and be like, do you know Jesus? Do you know Jesus? did yeah It that doesn't always have to look like this. But I think if we all understand that we as believers, um he's writing stories for us and he's asking and inviting us to just share those stories. And it's the power of testimony that that stirs faith and it pushes the enemy back and it draws people in to ask questions about what God is doing and how God operates. And it can um present opportunities for people to be curious
00:13:37
Speaker
So I think in this way, um we all can be more evangelistic as we just share naturally what God has done in our lives.
Bible as a Reflective Tool
00:13:48
Speaker
Brilliant. Thank you. Yeah, I think sometimes there can be a sort of ah perception of what an evangelist is. and And that can obviously, I guess, puts pressure on people sometimes to think, oh I need to do evangelism. But as you say, there's actually we we influence other people around us. And actually, we're we are naturally mixing with so many different people. So yeah, thank you so much for that. um in ah In another podcast, you you you mentioned a little bit about looking in the mirror and thinking about who we should reflect. and I don't know if you say that often, but I wondered if you could share that because I really liked the and the point you made there yes yeah i uh this this really hit me this was i guess couple of years ago i think i was listening to a podcast and um
00:14:31
Speaker
Just viewing the word of God as as a mirror and and thinking about how often i as a girl, you know, I think guys and girls both look in the mirror. We're always trying to constantly catch our reflection, make sure our hair's in place. You know, you're always...
00:14:49
Speaker
checking to see what you look like. And and i I've been really drawn to the idea to the Word of God being like a mirror. And if I were to look in the Word of God, as much as I looked in the mirror or reflected in the mirror, how much more would I be reflecting the one that I am trying to be more like as I'm reading about his character, about what he's done, about what he can do and how he is involved in our relationships, our conversations. If i literally opened up scripture on a day-to-day basis, as much as I looked in the mirror, how much more would I reflect Jesus Christ?
00:15:36
Speaker
And i think about that a lot. um And so, yeah, it's been very meaningful for me to to reflect on it in this way because, you know, I think I've gone through different struggles where I've been really self-conscious. But as I have looked to Jesus and as I've looked to to the Word, um my eyes have been focused on a whole new thing, and that is...
00:16:05
Speaker
the character of God that is Jesus. And that has therefore just changed the way that I walk and changed the way that I reflect Him. Praise God, because that's always a work in progress.
00:16:18
Speaker
And I guess the ah the other side of that coin is that as we look into God's word and as we then reflect him, that means that we are then reflecting him to other people in the community that we're a part.
Balancing Community and Outreach
00:16:32
Speaker
And so I know that you've recommended that Christians surround themselves with others who will encourage them you know in their in their faith.
00:16:40
Speaker
but also that they get out to reach others for Christ. Do you have any advice on on how you balance those two things, the they gazing and into god's God's word or even gazing at Christ through God's word, reflecting him together and then reflecting him to those outside of the church? How do we how do we balance those different things? what What does that look like for you?
00:17:08
Speaker
I think that looks like, um i think it looks like being able to, in community, understand that we're not just to be hearers, but to be doers. And we know that doing doesn't like Doing does not mean that we're earning anything or that we have to do it, but that if we have really seen transformation in our lives and we've seen God's love poured out, um then it should be our natural response to then pour back out to to others.
00:17:46
Speaker
And so I think when we find ourselves in community in the Word, I think it's just really important to be able to collectively brainstorm how creatively we can walk out our faith together in a way that is reflecting Christ to others and trying to draw people in as well. So, yeah, I think it's just being very intentional about understanding that we weren't meant to stay in a bubble. We weren't meant to just stay with people who think just like us.
00:18:20
Speaker
Um, we were meant to be equipped with these people and to go out. and God has invited us into that kind of adventure too. So I think when when we know that we have a secure base and community, this can be really helpful in building confidence to go out together and just see what God will do in these spaces as they're sharing more about him and and reflecting him in various creative ways.
00:18:54
Speaker
Fantastic. Thank you. Yeah, it's very, very encouraging. So thank you so much for for sharing that
Where to Learn More about EEM
00:18:59
Speaker
with us. and Can you say where where people can find out more about EEM if they want to? Is there a ah website? We'll obviously put the details down, but could you say a little bit more about where they can find out more about what you do and what EEM does?
00:19:14
Speaker
Yes, people can visit EEM.org to find out more information about EEM. You can sign up for our free newsletter to hear stories like the ones that I told today.
00:19:28
Speaker
And you'll be able to just stay up to date with what God is doing in 36 nations. There's just a lot going on um The church is very much alive and people are so hungry for the word. So yeah, if you just go to EEM.org,
00:19:44
Speaker
You can find us on our website, or if you go to Eastern European Mission on Instagram and Facebook, you can also find our updates there as well.
00:19:56
Speaker
Great, Brooke, thank you so much. I think one of the things that has really struck me through the course of this conversation is something you said a little earlier, and you've illustrated this again and again and again, which is that that God's word does not, it does not return empty to him. Like it it will achieve the comp purposes for which it's sent out. So thank you so much for encouraging us.
00:20:16
Speaker
and Thank you so, so much, um Simon. Thank you, Brooke. Thank you to those who are listening. We look forward to being with you in another episode of Pep Talk when we get to hear from another brother and sister and their work. But for now, and that's a goodbye from me, a goodbye from Simon. Goodbye. And a goodbye from Brooke.
00:20:33
Speaker
Goodbye. Goodbye, everyone.