Proverbs 10:7 - The memory of the just [is] blessed: but the name of the wicked shall rot.
I am a "Baptist brat". My parents were saved when I was one years old, and had me in church from that time forward. Three times a week, rain or shine, I was in church. Special meetings, revivals, teen conferences, camps, you name it, I was there. I don't take any of it for granted. I have sat under hard preaching my entire life. I have sat under preachers that yelled at me, preachers that cried, preachers that were boring, preachers that held my interest the entire time, preachers that were sincere, preachers that were full of themselves, and preachers that I could tell genuinely loved me. All that to say, I have listened to thousands of sermons. And one thing stood out to me now that I look back at all that preaching.
The most popular preachers, the ones that were booked for most of the meetings, (especially for the teen conferences) were the ones with the "interesting testimony". You know- the testimony that was dramatic, and full of adventure- one particular preacher had supposedly killed someone, stolen cars, done prison time, and I can't remember what else- but now he was a full time evangelist serving the Lord with his whole heart! He kept everyone on the edge of their seat! He was funny, he was encouraging, and boy- the things God did in his life after salvation! Don't get me wrong. I like a good story about a changed life. But I soon picked up on a theme. The popular speakers all had the "interesting testimonies". Where were the preachers with the "boring" testimonies- i.e....a testimony like mine?
I was saved at five. At age five, the worst thing I had ever done was hit my sister or stolen a cookie. No high speed car chases for me! I had never been arrested, I had never had a dramatic "life change". In fact, I got saved, and life pretty much went on as normal. I flourished in my Baptist church. I read my Bible. I listened to the preaching. I embraced what I was taught. I determined to remain pure until marriage, and I did. I determined to never smoke, drink, or cuss, and to this day, at age 38, I still haven't done any of those things. I am not telling you this to brag- I am simply a product of the way I was raised, and the preaching that I sat under. All glory goes to God.
Oftentimes, though, I wondered when I would sit under an "interesting testimony" message. I wondered, "Why are we glorifying this man's life when he was doing all the wickedness? Won't that be attractive to the ones interested in trying all this stuff out?" I often felt bad, and down on myself, because I had such a "boring testimony". I mean, this is my testimony- saved at five. Grew up in church. Lived a good life. The end.
That's how I felt at times. But not anymore. The older I get, and the more I see how sin harms, my entire mindset has changed when it comes to having a "boring testimony". I no longer think I have a boring testimony. I think my testimony is one of the most interesting ones that you can have. It's one that I want all my children to have. It's one I wish everyone could have. Here's the thing.
I married pure. I brought no baggage into my marriage. I don't have to worry about weird diseases, or kids that aren't both mine and mine husband's. My husband and I learned everything about the physical relationship together, without the memories of past physical relationships in the back of our minds.
I have never smoked. I don't pour tons of money into the tobacco industry every year, or have the risk of developing lung cancer!
I have never drank. I don't know what it feels like to be drunk, to harm innocent people while drunk, and what it's like to do stupid things under the influence of alcohol.
I have never done drugs. My teeth aren't rotting out because of this, I don't go through withdrawals, and it hasn't ruined my life like it has for so many druggies.
With all of the above things I mentioned, because I have never done them, I don't have the desire to ever do them. I am 38. Why in the world would I even want to try any of those things now? Might as well make it the rest of my life with never doing any of them.
I have never NOT been in church. From the time my first child was born, I have raised all my children in church. Rain or shine, we are there. Special meetings, we are there. I am giving them the life that I was given.
And it's a good thing.
It's not boring.
It's amazing.
If you have a "boring testimony", stop thinking of it as boring. It's not. It's a good thing. There are many verses in the Bible that talk about having a good name. It's spoken of very highly in the Bible. You can go on to have a good life, even after doing prison time, but you are always going to have a black mark by your name here on earth. That won't go away. Why not try to keep a good name for your entire life here on the earth?
The older I get, the more I realize that my testimony is anything from boring- it's rare. And it's exactly the testimony that I want to keep, and I want to encourage other people to have. This article is not a knock on you if you have a different testimony than mine. Praise God you were saved when you were older, and that you have gained victory over certain sins in your life. All glory goes to him.
But.
Let me talk to you young ladies right now that don't feel like you have a "special testimony", or an "interesting testimony", or whatever. If you are being raised in a Christian home, you were saved young, you have kept yourself pure, and are trying to obey your parents and live a good life- this is for you. You are rare. You are special. A testimony like yours doesn't happen very often. Hold on to it. Don't let it go. Guard it. Guard your heart. Guard your name. Don't ever let someone make you feel like you are "boring".
Because someday, when you look back on your life, you will realize just how special your testimony truly was, and is.
Commentaires