Based on a True Story...

I was talking with one of my colleagues the other day and he was telling a story about me - something that I had related to him - but he had added all kinds of details that weren't what I had told him and, frankly, weren't true.

When I called him on it, he said, "I'm a pastor, I embellish. It's what we do."

That struck a nerve with me - not because I haven't ever embellished a story to make it funnier or conflated a story or two to make a point - indeed, I think we probably all do that to some extent. We do tend to want to make our stories more interesting and possibly more entertaining but that's not really the point, here. I don't really have a problem with mild embellishments of personal stories - I might make myself sound dumber in something that I did that I really was, to make a point or whatever - but it's that he said, "I'm a pastor, I embellish. It's what we do."

And, well, yeah, it IS what we do...sometimes. (And, yeah, not just pastors...)

But if we're so flippant about the truth with the personal stories we tell...are we that casual with the Gospel, too? God save us if we are. I mean, I can't help but read the Bible through the filters that I have - who I am, where I grew up, what I've experienced, etc. I know that skews some of what I read in certain directions. And, I think, that's okay. But there's a fine line between perspective and bias just as there's a fine line between embellishment and lying. Maybe I should preface all my personal stories with, "Based on a true story." 'Cause we all know what that means in movies. Or better, "Inspired by a true story." Yeah. That's what I should do.

But...too often that's the case with our reading of Scripture, our interpretation. Based on...Inspired by...but not the real deal. Not the actual word of God.

So...I'll probably continue to embellish personal stories (especially when I get on a roll...) because, "I'm a pastor, I embellish. It's what we do."

But I pray that I never take the Gospel that lightly. It is the original True Story.