‘As the deer pants for streams of water so my soul pants for you, O God’. (Psalm 42:1)In that wonderful day you will say, Thank the Lord! Praise his name! Tell the world about his wondrous love. How mighty he is! (Isaiah 12:4 Living Bible)
When the writer of Hebrews tells us not to neglect the assembling of ourselves together the reason he gives is so that we can encourage one another (10:25 ESV).
One of the most encouraging aspects of being part of a church family is when someone gives a testimony of how God has brought them to faith or has been working in their life.
The sharing of what God has done can spur others on in their Christian walk (10:25 NIV).
This giving testimony of how great God is and how mighty his works are is rooted in the Old Testament Scripture and embedded in Jewish tradition. King David wrote Psalm 40 just after he was miraculously saved by God. He thanked God for salvation in the beginning of the psalm and asked for further divine protection in the future at the end of the psalm. In the middle, however, David also wrote:
I proclaim your saving acts in the great assembly; I do not seal my lips I do not hide your righteousness I speak of your faithfulness I do not conceal your love and your faithfulness from the great assembly. (V.9-10)
David confirmed that he had made known Gods miracles in public, and this is something that we can all learn from.
When God gives us the gift of a miracle, (and if we are a Christian we all have received the miracle of salvation) we must give Him the gift of sharing our experiences.
In this way we connect people with the power of God and inspire faith in him.
No other person on Earth knows your story better than you do. Sharing your testimony with others can be a powerful and important way to thank God for all he has done.
When you think about giving testimony in a court of law its not given by the lawyer; its what a witness does. The witness is not trying to convince anybody. They are not trying to pressure the jury for a decision. They are just telling others what happened to them. And thats what we do when we give testimony in church.
Nobody can give your testimony like you. Unless you give a testimony about how God has worked (is working) in your life, your story will never be authentically told. By sharing your story, youre expressing gratitude to God. Youre not only letting others know about what God is doing in your life, but youre also being a model for a life of thanksgiving.
So, lets encourage one another by sharing our wondrous story,
of the Christ who died for me
I was lost, but Jesus found me
I was bruised, but Jesus healed me
His presence still is with me;
By His guiding hand Im led
(Francis H. Rowley)
Prayer
Father, it is our duty and our privilege to proclaim your mighty name and tell others of your great love. May our praise of you be always on our lips,
Amen.
Have a good week modelling thanksgiving.
Pastor Barry
