Unexpected...

One of the initiatives I'm enjoying being involved in at the moment is a Bible Society led venture called 'Unexpected'. Everything's going on behind the scenes at the moment but there will come a day (in May of this year) when all will be revealed. The objective is to kick-start a conversation right across the Manchester region about the bible, its role, its value and its message. At the heart of it all there will be a high profile media campaign encompassing outdoor and ambient media as well as a PR drive through the local papers and radio stations.

After having a nominal involvement throughout 2006, when this was first brewing, I've now been co-opted onto the team who are overseeing the creative process that will ultimately result in the origination, selection and execution of the campaign's themes. Over the last couple of weeks we've looked at street-level research that shows the pitifully poor grasp of the bible's content in the public mind. The most frequently recalled bible story from people questioned was Noah's Ark - a staggering 5% recalled that, about double the amount that recalled the story of the resurrection of Jesus!

So, in this context we've been skimming through bible stories to try and find those that we feel will have the greatest resonance with the proverbial 'man in the street'. At the end of the day the bible is about people's stories interwoven with God's story. Can we help people to see that (to paraphrase Rob Bell) 'It's not that the bible happened but that the bible happens'. My question to you is, if you could choose a story in the bible that conveys an aspect of real life in a way you think would relate to the average Mancunian what would it be?

P.S. Sorry but you'll have to wait until May to find out the ones we selected!