Have you ever heard someone share a testimony in church that made you embarrassed about your own? When someone asks something like, "When was the day you accepted Jesus in your heart?" I don't quite know what to say. For me, there wasn't a big, climactic turning point. I was never a tax collector or prostitute before I knew Jesus. I was just a kid.
I have believed in and loved the Lord most of my life, but American Christian culture sometimes seems to accept that as a lesser salvation. I grew up singing Bible verses in Sunday school and have continued living and maturing in that identity that I've always known. Does that make my passion less important or impactful? How does my always knowing my god make my salvation story not worth telling in a crowd of people? Why don't I feel excited about that? What is my testimony? Who wants to hear that?
I offer two stories.
There was a man, who, from an early age, decided to save himself for marriage. He was taught to value the sacredness of marriage as a child and wanted it for himself. As he grew, he honored his commitment, staying faithful to his promise. Eventually, he met the woman he had been waiting for and was able to marry her as a virgin: pure. Even amidst life's ups and downs, they remained dedicated in love to each other from that day.
There was another man, who may or may not have been taught the same values as the first man. Either way, he grew up quite differently, getting involved in various relationships throughout his adolescence. He gave himself away, flippantly. He did not value the sacredness of marriage. Relationships were simply a way to satisfy himself for a short time. But then he met a girl and she changed his life. He fell deeply in love with her. The values he had trampled carelessly on before, he now picked up and put in a place of honor. He changed, radically. Although he was not a virgin as the man above, he devoted the rest of his life to this girl in marriage, in holy marriage. They, as the couple before, began a journey together filled with love and loyalty to one another.
Which story would you rather hear?
They are both beautiful in their own way. But I have to say, as an authority on the romantic movie genre, I find that the second plot seems much more appreciated. That man didn't know what love was, but he learned and fell head-over-heels. I'm a hopeless romantic, and I gotta say, the idea of that is cute. Who doesn't want to be that girl, who changes everything for him? Super cute.
In reality, they are both equally significant. Both had struggles; it wasn't easy for either of them. But both men made the commitment and were faithful to it. That is what makes both stories worth listening to.
Maybe my life is a natural progression of simple obedience, like the first man. I've always been viewed as "the good kid," doing what's expected of me. Maybe the story of my life isn't an addictive page-turner. It might even be a little predictable.
No matter how humdrum my story of coming to Jesus is, I will tell it. Testimonies come in all shapes and sizes. They all need to be shared because they all bring glory to god. Though my biography may drag at times, the author knows what he is doing. Life with the Lord is a story worth writing regardless who I am or how I found him. My testimony may seem boring, but I will share it in wonder and in joy because my god is not.
