Next to our bed (and obviously our stove and fridge) the most important piece of furniture in our home is our dining room table. Shortly after our marriage, nearly 40 years ago, Irene and I purchased a round dining room table that seats eight – nine at a squeeze. It was the best money we’ve ever spent! Over all these years it has been the hub of our home as far as good food and rich fellowship are concerned. In addition to being the gathering place (and feeding trough) for our family, it has been a place where guests from all walks of life have sat — famous preachers and missionaries, next-door neighbours, strangers and members of our church family, happy young couples contemplating marriage, and couples whose marriages were barely holding together. It is a place of laughter and tears, a place of questions and answers, a place of inquiry and information, a place of Bible-reading and prayer, a place of discussion and discipleship. And the question that has sparked so much rich interchange has (in so many words) been, WHAT’S YOUR STORY?

A few Saturday nights ago, we invited a group of Campus Outreach staff to our home for a meal – ten in all, including two delightful children. Obviously, the dining room table was too small so we sat around the lounge. After the main course, we asked the question, WHAT’S YOUR STORY? We listened in awe as one after another shared their story. They spoke of their family backgrounds, their coming to Christ, their call to ministry, their studies and struggles, and their future aspirations. The stories were rich in their diversity, but held together by the common thread of God’s amazing grace and keeping power. Irene and I shared our stories too and answered some of their questions about the church and theological issues.

After they had left and we were tidying up the kitchen, we commented to one another on what a rich and rewarding evening it had been. It’s amazing what a little intentionality and the simple question, WHAT’S OUR STORY? can do!