{The Emperor Akbar was traveling to a distant place along with some of his courtiers. It was a hot day and the emperor was tiring of the journey. “Can’t anybody shorten this road for me?” he asked, querulously. “I can,” said Birbal. The other courtiers looked at one another, perplexed. All of them knew there was no other path through the hilly terrain. The road they were traveling on was the only one that could take them to their destination. “You can shorten the road?” said the emperor. “Well, do it.” “I will,” said Birbal. “Listen first to this story I have to tell.” And riding beside the emperor’s palanquin, he launched upon a long and intriguing tale that held Akbar and all those listening, spellbound. Before they knew it, they had reached the end of their journey. “We’ve reached?” exclaimed Akbar. “So soon!” “Well,” grinned Birbal, “you did say you wanted the road to be shortened.”}

Birbal stories, also known as Akbar-Birbal stories are folk stories from the Indian tradition. Akbar The Great (1542-1605) was a Mogul Emperor in India. His full name was Jalaludden Mohammed Akbar Padshah Ghazi and he ruled India from 1560 to 1605. He was illiterate but he surrounded himself with many learned people. Birbal (1528-1583) is one of the most popular figures in Indian history. Birbal’s duties in Akbar’s court were mostly administrative but he was a close friend of Akbar. Akbar loved his wisdom, wit and subtle humor.

The Birbal story shared above is a story that mimics the wisdom of Solomon (an example of that wisdom is found in tomorrow’s devotion). We all have experienced those moments when an hour seemed like four – or four hours seemed like one. Of course the time that passed was equal, but what we were doing, or listening to, or watching made the time seem either long, or short. So instead of shortening the road, which itself would have been a miracle, he was able to shorten the perception of time itself – which some days is nothing less than a miracle. Do you have a story teller in your family – someone who could weave a tale where even time itself seemed an illusion? Jesus seemed to have such an ability – though his stories weren’t illusions, they didn’t stop time – instead they have stood the test of time – and are stilled shared to this day.

If you want to experience Jesus’ extraordinary gift of story telling, I encourage you to read Luke 15:11-32.

Pastor Dave