Everyone has a story. Some people have more than one. Some people don't want to share theirs. Some can't wait. When I worked as a talk show host, I was blessed to hear stories from famous people like Max Lucado and Brian "Head" Welch. But stories that touched my heart the most were the ones from people you've never heard of who are doing their best every day. Dave, a truck driver from Ohio, called to say he'd backed his milk truck over a creek. He was thankful the truck had stayed upright. The rest of the story is that he'd backed up to give another trucker more room to park. Nice guys like Dave have stories about that break your heart and stories that make you laugh.
Many stories lingered long after the On Air light goes off: David was a crack addict for 12 years and had been sober one week. Then there was Woody, whose wife left him and their two small children for another man. Woody started crying, he was so sad to lose his wife. He said he forgave her; he just wanted her back. It amazes me that I care about people so much when I knew them only by a name, voice and location. How much more we can care about those we see and touch. If only we knew all of their stories.
It's a talk show host's job to listen more than talk. And for some of us, listening is much harder than talking. Then there are times that words fail.
You don't have to be a talk show host to hear the stories that people need to share. Listen, yes. And when words don't come, communicate with your heart.
But don't forget to tell your story. Someone is waiting to hear it.
If you believe that Jesus Christ came to earth, died and rose again, you have a story about how he has changed your life. The way you tell it and the circumstances unique to you may be the only way to reach a certain person. To paraphrase the great motivational speaker Les Brown, people may be dying – for eternity – because they haven't heard your story.
