Master the Art of Storytelling with Nick Benoit and Paul Johnson
Jun 13, 2023
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Nick Benoit and Paul Johnson, the creative director and executive director of Bravingbird respectively, discuss the power of storytelling in churches and organizations. They emphasize how storytelling makes room for overlooked artists and moves truth from head to heart. They also explore the impact of storytelling in church services and highlight the themes in their collection of 11 stories. Listeners can learn how to access and download pieces from Bravingbird's website and discover the film Tracy for sermon incorporation.
Storytelling makes room for artists in the church and pierces our defenses, moving truth from head to heart.
Bravingbird aims to equip pastors with storytelling tools and provide stories that bring eternal truths to life.
Deep dives
Introduction to Bravingbird
Steve Carter introduces Bravingbird, a company focused on creating stories and films for the local church. He interviews Paul Johnson and Nick Benoit, the executive director and creative director of Bravingbird, discussing the inspiration behind the company's name, which stems from the concept of messenger pigeons delivering vital messages. They believe that stories have the power to reach people and convey life and death messages when other methods fail. The goal of Bravingbird is to create stories with gospel themes that can be used in various settings, primarily in the context of church services and programs, such as weekend services, small groups, or youth groups.
The Purpose of Bravingbird Stories
Paul Johnson, the executive director, explains that the main aim of Bravingbird is to tell great stories with gospel themes that can be used by anyone. While their stories can be used for various purposes, they have focused on crafting content that is relevant to the church community, as they have extensive experience in that context. They emphasize that their stories are versatile and can be integrated not only into church services, but also in parent-child interactions, business meetings, and classroom settings. They have already received feedback from churches implementing their stories creatively in unexpected ways, demonstrating the adaptability and impact of their content.
The Role of Stories in Church Services
Paul Johnson reflects on his past experience as an executive producer in church services. He highlights the significance of incorporating storytelling to engage different parts of the congregation and provide varied experiences of connection with God. Drawing inspiration from Jesus, who used stories extensively to teach, Bravingbird aims to equip pastors and communicators with storytelling tools to effectively convey messages and make meaningful applications. They want to provide stories that bring eternal truths to life, connecting people to Jesus and inviting them into a deeper understanding of their faith. They believe that powerful storytelling has the potential to impact and transform individuals.
The Vision and Mission of Bravingbird
Nick Benoit, the creative director of Bravingbird, explains their vision to increase their content output, grow their team, and expand the range of stories they offer. Their goal is to have 40 films available within the next two years, engaging a second creative team to achieve this. They aim to provide pastors and communicators with easily accessible tools by categorizing stories according to themes and passages. Bravingbird wants their stories to serve as a jumping-off point for message preparation and to weave the threads of the gospel into various aspects of life. They emphasize that their resources are freely available for use by churches, as their mission is focused on serving the church and connecting people to Jesus through the power of storytelling.
If you’ve ever felt creatively fatigued from the demand to preach week after week, meet Bravingbird: a go-to resource to help you communicate the gospel story with more clarity, beauty, and authenticity.
In this episode, Steve Carter interviews Nick Benoit (creative director) and Paul Johnson (executive director) about why the art of storytelling is a powerful communication tool for churches and organizations:
Storytelling makes room for artists in the church who are often overlooked and undervalued.
Storytelling pierces our defenses, moving truth from head to heart.
How preachers can tell stories with more impact.
The lingering potency of stories in an age of information overload.
Jesus told a lot of stories一to answer questions, field criticism, and teach profound truth. If compelling narratives flowed from the greatest teacher in human history, shouldn’t pastors today be experts in the craft of storytelling too?