“The Bible is most of all a Story. It’s an adventure story about a young Hero who comes from a far country to win back his lost treasure. It’s a love story about a brave Prince who leaves his palace, his throne – everything – to rescue the one he loves. It’s like the most wonderful of fairy tales that has come true in real life!
You see, the best thing about this Story is – it’s true.
There are lots of stories in the Bible, but all the stories are telling one Big Story. The Story of how God loves his children and comes to rescue them.
It takes the whole Bible to tell this Story. And at the center of the Story, there is a baby. Every Story in the Bible whisipers his name. He is like the missing piece in a puzzle – the piece that makes all the other pieces fit together, and suddenly you can see a beautiful picture.
And this is no ordinary baby. This is the Child upon whom everything would depend. This is the Child who would one day – but wait. Our Story starts where all good stories start. Right at the very beginning . . .”
So begins The Jesus Storybook Bible by Sally Lloyd-Jones. You may remember that passage if you’ve been to one of the Behold the Lamb of God concerts. Andrew reads it at the opening of the show and it sets the stage perfectly for the musical story to follow.
When we sat down to discuss who we wanted for a guest speaker at this year’s Hutchmoot, Sally Lloyd-Jones was one of the first names to come up. Her melding of story, art, and the coming of Christ is a central theme in the Rabbit Room and something we hope will be the subject of much lively conversation this September. So earlier this year, we extended our invitation to Sally, and now we’re delighted to be able to announce that she’s accepted.
Born in Kampala, Uganda, raised in East and West Africa, and at a boarding school in the New Forest (Manor House), the first book Sally ever remembers reading all the way through was The Complete Nonsense by Edward Lear, and she says “Things have never been the same since.”
She was educated at Sherborne, went to Sussex University and Paris Sorbonne IV (where she studied Art History), and worked in children’s book publishing for several years (Oxford University Press in Oxford, Octopus Books in London, Joshua Morris in CT, and Reader’s Digest) before leaving in 2000 to write full-time.
She’s written many books for children including the critically-acclaimed New York Times bestseller How To Be A Baby: By Me, The Big Sister (a hilarious “manual” on the behavior of babies by the elder sibling), one of only six children’s titles selected by The New York Times as Notable for 2007.
She’s a world-renowned writer with a unique understanding of the power and beauty of storytelling, and we couldn’t be more excited to be hosting her as our keynote speaker at Hutchmoot 2011.
Be sure to visit the Hutchmoot website to check out the suggested reading list. We’ve added The Jesus Storybook Bible and a few other topical reads. Look for more to be added as sessions and speakers are announced.