You are a genius
There is a whole field of linguistics called Discourse Analysis and you are all experts in it. You may not analyze the rules that each of us unknowingly use, but the rules are there. Don’t worry, they’re not the boring rules of syntax, morphology and semantics, but they are “suprasentential” which is a big word for saying ‘bigger than the sentence.’
You are a master of these rules. Without even realizing it, you are constantly using discourse markers like different intonation or stress or vocabulary to indicate to your listeners that you are changing important things like the place, the time or the actors.
These progressions through a developing story are often indicated by a new paragraph. Even larger changes are indicated by new chapters. They indicate continuity in the story unfolding in front of you, while also indicating that a new page has been turned.
A New Chapter
Welcome to a new chapter in the unfolding story of Global Intent. My role as the third Executive Director of this organization fills me with excitement and gratitude. Even so, the transition indicates a new time, new places and new actors. Global Intent is on the cutting edge, the front line of what God is doing among Unreached People Groups. The resources we have to offer are powerful for placing people among the least-reached and equipping them for effective service.
Still, the resources are empty without fervent followers. We need the rest of the paragraph, the rest of the chapter. We need all of the actors to take their places. We need fresh faces to engage deeply in giving and going.
I’ve taken my seat at the table. Won’t you join me?
