In Luke 15:11-32 (King James Bible, 1769/2017), Jesus tells the parable of
the Prodigal Son. This is a well-known example of Jesus using story-telling
in His teaching. He used this method often to engage His listeners and to
emphasize a point. In this parable, we learn of a father who had two sons.
The younger son wanted to receive his inheritance early so that he could
go and see what the world had to offer. He squandered all that his father
had given him and, at his lowest point, was eating with pigs. It was at that
time that he decided to go back to his father, supposing that he could
become a hired servant, which would still be much better than how he
was living. His father was watching and waiting expectantly for his return.
Upon seeing his son coming toward him, he ran to him and embraced him.
He threw a celebration and welcomed his son back home, restored to his
previous position of son, not servant. When the older brother angrily
disagreed with the father's response, his father replied that it was to be a
time of celebration, because his brother was lost and is now found.7
Jesus used this story to represent the longing of God's heart after His
sinful children. His purpose was to emphasize God's love for the lost and
His desire to restore them. He was speaking to a crowd of lost people. He
wanted them to understand that they were never too far gone to come
home to God. God will always welcome the lost back to Himself. This was
a powerful example for the listeners, as they were able to reflect on their
own lives of sin and see that God still wanted them to come to Him. Jesus
was making connections to the lives of His listeners (James et al., 2015).
In my teaching, I can use storytelling to engage students in learning about
abnormal psychology. Specifically, regarding the topic of anxiety, I can tell
stories of college students experiencing symptoms of anxiety as they are
adjusting to the new environment, managing the workload, balancing
family expectations, and planning for their futures. Strauss (2016) shares
one such example. She shares the story of a college student named
Adelaide (Addie) who struggles with anxiety. In Addie's blog, a portion of
which is included with the article, she discusses what it feels like to have
anxiety. This story can help my students to gain a deeper understanding
of anxiety as a disorder, and also the continuum of normal feelings of
nervousness, versus a diagnosis of anxiety. Using examples of college
students will help my students to identify with the reality of anxiety and
may validate the experiences of some. It will help them to make the
connections between what we are learning and real life. According to
Kromka et al. (2019), college students find stories that relate to the place
they are in life to be relevant. Stories about children or married couples
are considered to be less relevant.7
References
James, G., Martinez, E., & Herbers, S. (2015). What can Jesus teach us
about student engagement?7Journal of Catholic Education, 19(1), 127-154.
7 7 7http://dx.doi.org/10.15365/joce.1901062015
King James Bible. (2017). Cambridge University Press. (Original work
published 1769)
Kromka, S. M., Goodboy, A. K., & Banks, J. (2019). Teaching with relevant
(and irrelevant) storytelling in the college classroom.7Communication
Education, 69(2), 224-249.
7 7 7https://doi-org.ezproxy.liberty.edu/10.1080/03634523.2019.1657156
Strauss, V. (2016, February 2). Facing down debilitating anxiety- A college
freshman's story.7Washington Post.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet/wp/2016/02/02/facin
g-down-debilitating-anxiety-a-college-freshmans-story/
