Can I Get a Witness??

I’m going to be brutally honest and tell on myself…

When I was a kid I used to love to hear someone get up and give their testimony. Mainly because I am a good Baptist girl who has grown into a good Baptist woman and I’m nosey. Now, before you grab your ladder to climb your high horse, watch out for that speck in your own eye! Let’s face it, as women we love, I mean lurve, a good story don’t we? It seems that all of our senses are heightened when we are on the verge of an important piece of information. I do want to clarify. I’m not talking about mean-spirited, dragging -someone’s- personal- life- through- the- mud –for- the- purpose- of- my- own- satisfaction story. There is a difference between gossip and nosiness, although the two usually run close together so be careful! Anyway, I’m talking about people giving their life stories, finding out the details of an engagement or news of a long awaited pregnancy. I just love the details. Lord help me, I am detailed down to the ridiculous. My poor husband has learned over the years to trade in the common “yes” and “no” answers for more adjectives and run on sentences..he’s a good man and he’s worn down!

Anyway, back to testimonies. One thing that always intimidated me was that I never felt like I had a really GOOD testimony. I would hear these people talk about serious drug addiction, alcohol abuse, eating disorders and all manner of prodigal living and think to myself, “Well, I’ve just been saved, that’s all.” It almost seemed like the more grievous the sins, the closer to God! So, whenever someone would ask me to give my testimony I would get very uncomfortable because I wasn’t sure what that was. I didn’t have a great story. I hadn’t been a homeless runaway with any addictions and tattoos in unmentioned places. I had been a Pastor’s daughter that was raised in church and saved at age 5. Then it dawned on me, most of these stories were glorifying the sin and drawing attention to self instead of God.

From there, I began to really think about the word testimony. Most of the time when we hear the word testimony we think bio with a little bit of Jesus on the side. You know, my name is Stephanie, I am thirty-something years old, I am married to Kraig, two kids etc; However, the literal translation of the word testimony is “witness or bearing witness.” The word testify and testimony can also be translated, “someone who has personal and immediate knowledge of something.” That’s when the Holy Spirit gently pressed in on me, “your testimony is your witness to the truth of the gospel in your life!” So, basically, how does my life witness to the truth of Jesus? The reality is that according to scripture, we are all totally depraved and wayward before the cross. There is a wonderful saying that brings this home, “It’s all level ground at the cross.”

So, it really doesn’t matter what my sins were before the cross; it matters that they are forgiven in Christ. The glorious reality of the gospel in my life is what takes place AFTER salvation. You know what? That’s when it gets good! That’s when you hang on the edge of your seat to see the unspeakable mercies and indescribable grace of a Savior who continues to shut our mouths in awe! So, for the record, I’m going to give you a brief testimony as a witness to the truth of the gospel in my life by saying this, “Jesus me who I am NOT!”

“I thank my God always concerning you for the grace of God which was given you in Christ Jesus, that in everything you were enriched in Him in all speech and all knowledge, even as the TESTIMONY concerning Christ was confirmed in you, so that you are not lacking in any gift, awaiting eagerly the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will also confirm you to the end, blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.” 1 Corinthians 1:4-8