The Power of Your Testimony

11 And they have defeated him by the blood of the Lamb and by their testimony. And they did not love their lives so much that they were afraid to die." Revelation 12: 11

Day 32 in Draw the Circle by Mark Batterson is about "Get a Testimony". I'm not sure why he titled it that way, because I believe we all have a testimony. There isn't really any having to "get" one.

Your testimony is simply the story of your life and what God has done in and through you. 

A few points I'd like to share from this chapter though are this:

• I wonder if the lack of awe in many churches is directly attributable to the lost art of the testimony. 
• Churches that see people radically saved are usually churches that allow radically saved people to share their testimonies.
• When a testimony of healing is shared, for example, those who hear it get an infusion of faith to believe God for healing in their own lives.
• When we share a testimony, we are loaning our faith to others.
• When we listen to a testimony, we are borrowing faith from others. Either way, the church is edified and God is glorified.

Your testimony, your story, is personal and you experienced it first hand. It's not hearsay or second hand knowledge.

Much like the disciples who actually walked with Jesus. We can trust what they wrote in the Bible, because it's a first eye, first hand, experience.

Are you sharing what God is doing in your life with anyone else? Or are you hoarding it to yourself?

We need to share with others how God is working and moving on our behalf. 

Maybe you are in a season that doesn't feel like He's moving at all. If that's the case, talking to someone about it might help. Because I bet they will see where He is working and can help point that out to you.

I have written my testimony out before. I have had much more happen in my life since then, but the event that brought me back to God was losing my twin sons.

It was 1996 and I was pregnant for the second time that year. I had miscarried early on, around 6 weeks, in the spring. When I was two months along, I had some complications. We had an ultrasound done and that's when we saw the twins. I remember in detail what they looked like on that ultrasound screen. I thought I saw two heartbeats before the nurse ever said anything.

When the doctor came in and looked, he told us it was twins. He said, "Twins are high risk for anyone. Even a 6 foot tall woman. You are short. At 6 months, you are going to look 9 months."

I was up for the challenge!I was so excited about twins!

Another month or so down the road, more complications came up, and I ended up in the hospital. They were fraternal, so the doctor thought I could lose one and keep one. He gave me a shot and was making me stay the weekend in the hospital. (I went in on a Saturday morning.)

Long story short, they ended up putting me to sleep. I delivered the babies.

When I woke up, I experienced something I had never felt in my life. Peace. It was blissful.

Now, I have to tell you, before being put to sleep I said, "If I lose these babies, you will have to send me to the looney floor here at the hospital. I won't be able to handle it."

BUT GOD!

I was not living for God when this happened. I had been out of church for years. I missed the whole youth group experience because I was too busy doing things I shouldn't have been.

God touched me anyway. God gave me peace and I RAN to Him. I got back in church as soon as I was well enough to go, and I've never left.

I will admit, every year, when Thanksgiving gets close, I remember my boys. (By the way, the doctor wouldn't tell me their gender. I found out another way.)

When I first got back in church, I didn't really understand how God works, and I used to tell people, "God MADE me lose my twins to come back to Him."

WHAT WAS I THINKING? What loving Father breaks His child's heart, and thinks she will come to Him?

No, I have a health condition that caused the miscarriages. God stepped in and turned it around for my good. He promises to do that in your life too. (Read Romans 8:28.)

I know my story is somewhat specific and it might only reach some people. But that's ok. It's what God did in my life, and if it helps you in some way, that's all that matters.

What's your story? What testimony to God's faithfulness do you have? I hope you will consider sharing it somehow. Pray for God to give you the opportunity to share it. Your story can infuse someone else's faith!

God bless you today and always.