Conversations at Home 回家分享
Dexu Xia
Go home to your own people and tell them how much the Lord has done for you. Mark 5:19
“There’s no place like home. There’s no place like home.” Those unforgettable lines spoken by Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz reveal a story-telling device found in an overwhelming number of our most enduring stories from the likes of Star Wars to The Lion King. It’s known as “the hero’s journey.” In brief: an ordinary person is living an ordinary life when an extraordinary adventure is presented. The character leaves home and travels to a different world where tests and trials await, as well as mentors and villains. If she or he passes the tests and proves heroic, then the final stage is returning home with stories to tell and wisdom gained. The last piece is crucial.
The story of the demon-possessed man closely parallels the hero’s journey. It’s interesting that in last scene the man begged Jesus to let him “go with him” (Mark 5:18). Yet Jesus told him: “Go home to your own people” (v. 19). It was important in this man’s journey to return home to the people who knew him best and to tell them his amazing story.
God calls each of us in different ways and to different scenarios. But for some of us, it can be crucial for our faith journey to go home and tell our story to those who know us best. For some of us, the call is “there’s no place like home.”
Who comes to mind that needs to hear what God has done for you? What does the first step in that journey look like?
Jesus, give me the courage to tell of Your wonderful works. Not just to strangers, but also to those who know me best—those at home.
在电影《绿野仙踪》里，桃乐丝有句名言：“没有任何地方比得上家。”在如《星际大战》和《狮子王》这类脍炙人口的电影中，我们也可以看到这句话所引申的叙事手法，就是所谓的“英雄旅程”。简言之，就是一个过着平凡生活的普通人，展开了非凡的冒险之旅。主角离开家乡前往不同的世界，那里有试探与考验，也有导师与恶棍等着他。如果主角通过测试证明自己的英勇，那么结尾就是主角带着得到的智慧与奇妙的经历回家。这最后的一幕至关重要。
马可福音提到的那个被鬼附的人，他的经历也与英雄旅程类似。有趣的是，在最后一幕那人恳求耶稣，希望能和耶稣在一起，耶稣却对他说：“你回家去，到你的亲属那里”（5章18-19节）。对这人的旅程来说，最重要的是回家，回到最了解他的亲人那里，将自己奇妙的经历告诉他们。
上帝呼召每个人时所用的方式不同，让我们面对的情况也不同。但对有些人来说，在信仰旅程中最重要的是回家，将自己奇妙的经历告诉那些最了解我们的人。对这些人来说，那呼召就是“没有任何地方比得上家”更需要我们。
你有哪些亲属，
需要听到上帝在你身上奇妙的作为？
要回家分享信仰，第一步该怎么做呢？
耶稣，请给我勇气，让我诉说祢奇妙的作为，
不仅告诉陌生人，更要告诉那些最熟知我的至亲。