WE ARE ENTERING  AN INTERESTING NATIONAL CONVERSATION.  (In reality, we’re in the middle of a number of them already.)  The events of this past weekend are not something I feel competent to speak about.  I have been close to tragedy, but not as close as others, those whose voices carry much more weight than mine.

And so I’d like to direct your attention to something Donald Miller said recently. It’s not so much about national tragedy as it is about  narrative and the stories leaders tell.  And if there’s one things leaders do, it is tell stories.  “Narrative is the most powerful force to manipulate the masses. Let’s be careful how we use it. And let’s not be manipulated,” Miller asserts.  Narrative shapes things, shapes us, and there are multiple narratives out there about America, what it was, is, and will be.

Beware the simplified narrative.  Listen well, think critically.  Hold fast to your convictions, but hear well what others are saying.  Don’t be content with a sound-byte narrative.  Remember that stories go deep, that they are rooted at a heart level for each of us.

And read Miller’s “Are Black-and-White Narratives Manipulative?” here.