In some of the activities I do, I have the opportunity to hear women’s testimonies. Lot’s of women’s testimonies. It never fails, as I’m listening to someone’s testimony, one person will give a dramatic story that happened in their life. Something so dramatic, that it changed their life. They usually don’t mention Jesus, or He’s a small detail in their story. But the story is always about them and this very dramatic event. It’s about how they came through this event and now they are happy and that much stronger because of it. What they fail to mention is how they came in contact with Jesus Christ. That’s what a Christian testimony is supposed to be about. But many of these stories don’t have that. We all have dramatic stories to tell. But when a person gives their testimony, they should be telling us all about that point when they came in contact with Jesus Christ as their Savior. That moment in time when a transaction occurred. That moment, that day, that time when they let go of their own life and accepted Christ.
One day I was listening to some women’s testimonies. After several women had shared when they accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior, one woman started questioning herself. She wanted to know why she didn’t have the testimony everybody else seemed to have. She wondered why she didn’t seem to have the power of God in her life like the other women had. Another woman turned to her and told her to never let ANYONE question her testimony! She told her to not let anyone tell her she wasn’t a Christian. That wasn’t right, this woman said. She kept saying it over and over again to all the ladies, to not let anyone ever tell you you aren’t a Christian or to question your Christianity. What?!?
What does the Bible say about this? Does the Bible tell us to protect our stories and our title of Christian? Are we to go around defending ourselves to everyone who comes along and asks us when we became a Christian?
2 Corinthians 13:5 “Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you-unless indeed you fail the test?”
What is this verse saying? It tells us to test ourselves. It tells us to examine ourselves. Are we in the faith? And how do you become “in the faith?” Going back to what I talked about before, we need to see if there was a point in time, when we accepted Jesus Christ as our Savior. Is there? Was there? Question yourself. Let someone question your Christianity. It is that important. Examine yourself. Do you know Jesus Christ as Savior? We all have stories to tell. Does YOUR testimony have the point in time when YOU accepted Jesus Christ as Savior? Make sure you do and tell others about it. If you don’t have a testimony, you can get one. You can do it right now, right at this moment. And then your testimony will be sure. You will be sure.
I think what happens to women nowadays is that they get caught up in the Christian culture. They have family or friends who are truly Christian, so they start copying those people. They may start going to church. They may start going to a Bible study. They may start home schooling their kids. As they go along in these activities, they began to learn the lingo. The “Christianese,” as I call it. So these people sound like Christians. They look like Christians on the outside. But truly they are NOT Christians. The longer they go, and the deeper they get, they began to believe they ARE Christians. They lack the power of God in their lives. They are mere copycats. Every once in awhile, the true Christian tangles up with the copycats. The true Christian wonders what’s up with this? How come I can’t get along with this “sister in Christ?” How come there seems to be something missing? That’s because THERE IS! They are missing JESUS CHRIST!!!
So dear reader, question yourself. See if you really are in the faith. Question yourself. Look back in your life and try to remember that point in time when you accepted Jesus Christ as YOUR Savior. Let someone question your Christianity. They are doing you a HUGE favor. We should insure ourselves that we truly are in the faith. Has that transaction occurred? Do have have a time and place? If not, do it now. You don’t have to live without the power of God in your life and the HOLY SPIRIT living in you. Time is running out. Do it now. Accept Jesus Christ as your Savior.
If you find these words speaking to you don’t be a copycat. Become the real thing. Don’t deprive yourself of the POWER of God in your life. You don’t have to pretend anymore. Jesus told us He came to give us life and life more abundantly. Come get and experience that life. The copy is never as good as the read thing.