Editor’s Letter: Does everyone have a story worth telling?

I was recently asked if I believed everyone had a book in them. The saying ‘Everyone has a book in them’ is often attributed to the British journalist and author Christopher Hitchens, who made a rather more cynical observation: ‘Everyone has a book in them, which is exactly where it should, I think, in most cases, remain.’ Rude!

I don’t know if everyone has a book in them, but I do believe everyone has a story worth telling. I have just started reading Theo of Golden by Allen Levi. I was intrigued by the Christian author, who self-published his first novel at the age of 67 in 2023. It was later acquired by Simon & Schuster and has since sold millions of copies. The story follows Theo, who moves to the town of Golden and visits a coffee shop where 92 portraits of local residents hang on the walls. He begins buying the portraits and giving them to the people depicted in them. I’m only a third of the way through, but I recently listened to Allen Levi being interviewed by Oprah on a podcast. He spoke about how everyone has a story and everyone wants to feel seen. That, it seems to me, is at the heart of his novel. And I couldn’t agree more.

The stories I seek out are those of people who have followed, trusted and obeyed Jesus through the highs and lows of life. Not just the victories, but the disappointments, the unexpected turns and the times when life hasn’t gone according to plan. Looking back over someone’s life and tracing the golden thread of God’s faithfulness through it all is a beautiful thing.

That’s why I particularly loved speaking to Wendy Virgo and Becs Dhillon at the Premier studios for this month’s online issue of Woman Alive. Wendy, now 80, has decades of wonderful stories about God’s faithfulness. Her life is a testimony to the adventures God can take us on when we trust him, and how those adventures don’t necessarily stop as we get older.

Becs shared what it was like growing up travelling the world with her father, Nicky Gumbel, as Alpha expanded internationally. Her faith grew as she witnessed Jesus transforming lives, from South America to Kuala Lumpur, in prisons and among the wealthy.

Two very different women, with very different stories, but both with that same golden thread of God’s faithfulness running through their lives. Both interviews were also recorded for our Woman Alive podcast, so do have a listen if you’d like to hear more of their fascinating stories.

We also have our regular columnists, Jamie Phear, Rhiannon Goulding, Kate Orson and Monique Thomas, bringing their usual wisdom, honesty and encouragement. This month for The Lens, Lizzie Hutchison asks Can Christian men and women really be just friends?

And don’t miss our Author’s Corner interview with Ruth Leigh, our In Business interview with the creative Helen Richardson, and My Story with Keely Hall, who spent 30 years as an atheist before an encounter with Jesus changed everything.

As I reflect on all these women and their stories, I am reminded that no two lives are the same. We all have different experiences, passions, victories and heartbreaks. But every story matters, and I believe there is something we can learn from each one. Which brings me back to my original question. Perhaps not everyone has a book in them, but what about their story? What is yours?

I’d love to challenge you to take some time this month to sit down with a notebook and reflect on your own life. You don’t need to be a writer, and you certainly don’t need to have lived an extraordinary life. Sometimes it’s only when we stop and look back that we begin to recognise just how much God has been at work.