推薦序
Preface for “The Biggest Story”
Storytelling is one of the best ways to teach people! We remember enjoying the bed time stories our Moms told us. We don’t want her to stop until we fade away into sleep. And of course there are all the Bible stories that shaped our godly value system during Sunday School or in youth group.
說故事是讓人們理解的最好方式之一。從小到大，每個人想必都曾經很享受媽媽唸床邊故事給我們聽，我們從不希望她突然中途停下來，總希望一直聽故事直到我們睡著為止。當然，許多關於我們對於 神的信仰與價值觀的塑造，也常常都是在上教會主日學與青少年小組的故事分享中潛移默化。
As a German pastor and being in leadership in Tainan, Taiwan, for 20 years, I understand both western and eastern culture. Many educational methods might differ, but when it comes to storytelling all cultures have one thing in common: young and old love learning through stories. Observing my own children, I understand that school education is burdensome and exhausting. How do we teach them about God and His Word? One more teaching? Another time of sitting in a classroom?
身為一位來自德國的牧師，並且已擁有在臺灣臺南帶領教會二十年的資歷，使我充分了解東方、西方兩種文化。東西文化兩者之間或許因為教育方法有許多不同，但「說故事」是無論男女老幼都喜歡藉此來學習的方式，這就是可以跨越東西文化差異找到的共通處。當我觀察我自己的孩子時，得知學校的教育似乎帶給他太多的壓力與挫折。那麼，我們該怎麼教導孩子們關於 神與祂所說的話語呢？難道會是另一堂課？亦或是另一段必須讓孩子再坐在教室裡的時光？
The goal of God’s Word is revelation and transformation. Knowing God and being transformed into His likeness. The stories in the Old Testament are stories of a perfect God with His imperfect people, drawing us into the scenery to identify with their sin and weakness. The snake is still active today and we are faced with the same dilemma: We need Jesus, the snake crusher! Jesus himself was a story teller! His way of teaching was to tell stories and parables, having people sit around him with open ears and open hearts! He also walked with all kinds of people and they experienced wonderful things together: healings and miracles as well as adventures and times of trials. Those in turn became the stories of the New Testament.
通常 神的話語，其目地是在於啟發與轉化；即了解 神的心意，並進一步用述說的方式轉化成祂所喜悅的。在《舊約聖經》中的故事就是描述完美的 神與祂不完美的子民，並將這些子民刻劃到這些景象中以辨識出他們所犯的罪與軟弱。故事中的那條蛇直到今天依然活躍，我們也仍然面對著同樣的困境──我們都需要耶穌，也就是那位屠蛇的勇士！耶穌也是一位擅長說故事的人，祂教育子民的方式就是說故事與傳講寓言，讓人們自然地圍坐在祂的身邊專心聽講。祂也曾和各種人同行，並一起經歷了許多美好的事情，包括醫治與神蹟，以及好幾次的冒險與試煉，這些經歷後來都變成了《新約聖經》的故事。
The Bible is “The Biggest Story”. Kevin de Young uses this condensed version to feed our new generation with a language that is easy to listen to and with portions that are good to digest. The illustrations of Don Clark present a visual art that matches the quality of the content. May God use this book in your life to transform you to become the person God intended you to be!
這部《聖經》就是「The Biggest Story」。本書作者凱文•德揚（Kevin de Young）將厚重的《聖經》改採這個濃縮版，並搭配白話、流暢的文字，分成幾大部分餵養給新世代的孩子們。而東• 克拉克（Don Clark）的插畫，則讓本書呈現出完美搭配這些故事的視覺藝術。願 神在你的人生中能用這本書來轉化你，並讓你成為 神意圖想讓你成為的人。
May God’s Bless is always be with you.
願 神的祝福總是與你同在。
Johannes Kuhhorn
Senior Pastor Tainan Dayspring Church
顧約翰（Johannes Kuhhorn）
臺南晨光教會創辦人�主任牧師
