What will your story be?
by Doris Murdoch
I viewed the movie, “Mary and Martha”, on Prime TV today. It was a very moving movie….I cried through this one! The movie was about family members dying of malaria and the events that occurred after this that altered several families’ lives forever. I highly recommend the movie.
Besides sharing the story of malaria, this movie points the finger at “first world countries” and our lack of understanding and apathy for the worldwide struggles of mankind. Government avoids dealing with these struggles; life is better to look the other way and reap the rewards of public office. Societies and individuals get wrapped up in the social demands of petty conversations and purchases of the “worldly needs”. Even our family can become callous when they witness what they consider overindulgence in helping others and aiding the world in being a better place for us all. On a personal note, one can get involved in education and achieving goals and then overlook the needs of others in our quest.
What will our story be? I’m guilty of choosing success, recognition, and pride in these endeavors. Is that the story I want? Do I want to testify to the world of my great achievements? Or do I want a story that will testify to my growing faith and help others to get on track with a growing faith? Do I want to glorify myself or glorify God? What kind of faith do we have?
On page 188 of my book, Testify: By the Blood of the Lamb and Word of Our Testimony, I emphasize the words of Charles Stanley1. He suggests three essentials to be operative for someone to check out your faith. First, your character needs to be solid. What a person is on the inside is so much more important than what is observed on the outside. Sometimes that means following God to where or whom you least expect. Second, your conduct, or what you do, must be true to what you say. Conduct reveals character. A godly walk needs to be maintained and carefully watched over. Stanley’s last essential is conversation. Your conversation will either cloud or confirm your character and your conduct. Jesus should always be at the center of your conversation, not you. With Jesus at the center, the seed is planted and the Holy Spirit will nourish it into life. Your responsibility in sharing your testimony is to line up your character, conduct, and conversation. This can withstand cross examination and can be a life-changing experience for you and the person who is receiving the testimony. As we look at these three essentials, we see that testimony development can be beneficial in giving testament to your faith.
1Stanley, Charles. The Glorious Journey: Insight, Encouragement, and Guidance for Your Walk of Faith. Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers. 1996.