What Is Your Jesus Story?

Everyone loves a good story—old and young alike.

Jesus recognized the power of a story and always had one tucked up His sleeve, ready to use wherever He found an opportunity. His stories were filled with “the familiar events of everyday life. . . . In this way He associated natural things with spiritual, linking the things of nature and the life experience of His hearers with the sublime truths of the written word. And whenever afterward their eyes rested on the objects with which He has associated eternal truth, His lessons were repeated.”* Jesus is our example in all things, and if He was never without a story, then what about us? Do we have a Jesus story to share with others? I love the story of the two believers who were joined on the road to Emmaus by Jesus.

Not that they realized it at that moment. But once they recognized their Savior, they hurried back to Jerusalem, where they “told their story of how the Lord had opened their eyes. . . . The company heard this report in breathless silence. Some were inspired with new faith; others were incredulous. Suddenly Jesus himself was in their midst. His hands were raised in blessing, and he said unto them, ‘Peace be unto you.’ ”† Whenever we share the story of what Jesus means to us and how He has changed our lives, others are inspired and amazed. He is with us, and our hearts burn within us (see Luke 24:32). Do we hesitate to share our story? Think of the early church, how passionate they were to let the whole world know of their Savior! Their stories poured forth from hearts on fire to make Christ known. But today, too often, “the atmosphere of the church is so frigid. . . . The first works of the [early] church were seen when the believers sought out friends, relatives, and acquaintances, and with hearts overflowing with love told the story of what Jesus was to them and what they were to Jesus.”‡ Oh, that this would be our experience! What does Jesus mean to you? Tell that story! Karen Pearson

* Ellen G. White, Counsels to Parents, Teachers, and Students (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press®, 1943), 140.

† Ellen G. White, The Spirit of Prophecy, vol. 3 (Battle Creek, MI: Seventh-day Adventist Pub. Assn., 1878), 217.

‡ Ellen G. White, Testimonies to Ministers and Gospel Workers (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press®, 1962), 167, 168.