Sipping Grace: My Testimony
For your faithful love for me is great, and you rescue my life from the depths of Sheol. – Psalm 86:13 CBS
Sipping coffee is my gig. It is part of my testimony of being a Christian. Coffee has led me to writing and evangelizing. Coffee has helped me connect to women around the world who lack the joy they can only receive through knowing Christ. Through coffee I have been able to share my even bigger love of Jesus Christ. My testimony of the love of coffee and the love of Christ is a story that I have a passion for telling. It is a story of joy. It is a story of God’s ability to repair anything and everything. My witness of Christ’s faithful love for me and His rescuing me is worth repeating, and repeating, and repeating. I don’t share my story in order bring glory to me in any way, but to give all the exaltation to the only One Who can save us from death.
Each day we walk this earth we are on display for His glory. Our charge is to live a life that puts His splendor on display whenever we are in public, or in the privacy of our own home. Our life long story is a march we embark on every day. Our Christian story is never a sprint to get “there” faster, as that is not possible, and in this walk we will never get to perfection. But the story that is behind your campaign of knowing Christ is what will lead others directly into His grace and mercy.
I was raised in the Catholic church with a family who loved God. We sat in the same pew each week, said memorized prayers, listened to my grandfather hum the hymns, and walked away each Sunday to never mention God again until the next Sunday. I loved God. I knew He was there for me. I prayed in the quiet of my room when I was frightened or lonely. But I didn’t know Jesus. I “knew” Jesus, but didn’t “know” Jesus.
As young adulthood, and the military, and marriage, and motherhood, moved my life forward, I drew only farther from a relationship of “knowing” Jesus. Then God sent me a Prince. At a time in my life when I only understood sadness and loneliness and hurt and depression, God answered life long prayers with my Prince. The Prince He knew would help me come to Christ and walk along the path with me.
My Prince didn’t know Jesus or God for that matter, but on one particular day we sat at an event and were shoved out of our chairs by the Holy Spirit and accepted Christ. God hears prayers (Psalm 65:2 CSB) and when we believe in our prayers, He answers them (Matthew 21:22 CSB). Now I know Jesus and because of this beginning event, I am on my way to a stronger, bigger, better relationship with Him.
You might be thinking, “well, what happened in between?”. I’ll tell you what happened! In between being shoved and living daily with Christ is a story that needs to be told in big, bold colors of red and green and purple. It needs to be put on display like the Arc was when it was moved to the temple and visibly showed God’s glory to all (II Chronicles 5:14 AMP). My life now stands as the temple and God is desiring to shine just as dramatically through me as He did in the temple.
What happened in between was, depression and anxiety, children who struggled in school, leaving a job I loved, children not wanting to be in our lives, cancer, my son leaving home, cancer, again, being fired from a job, losing my identity, finding my place in my career, COVID, losing my parents, having grandkids, traveling, being married 30 years to the same Prince, working for my church, writing for Christ. And in each of these occurrences, in each of these struggles, happy moments, frustrations, exuberant highs and weary lows God showed up and shined like a bright, brilliant Spirit caring me through it all. He healed cancer. He showed me my desires and abilities to write. He placed me in a job that allowed me to make a difference in the lives of children. He kept me healthy, saved my son from destruction, produced grandkids who are vibrant, clever, rascals, and showed me the love of a man that never ceases.
God saved me. Jesus carried me. The Holy Spirit spoke to me. My world changed and now people look at me and express, “Wow, what a wonderful God you serve!”. Now, my testimony serves as a pathway for others to know Christ who forgives, bears our struggles, takes away our pain.
My testimony, your testimony, is so very important. Our testimonies are so much more than simply sharing when we said the sinner’s prayer and so much bigger than sharing how sinful we used to be. More than anything, our testimonies are the story that brings glory to the One Who saved us. “Our salvation stories are a chance to bring adoration to the Lord of Lords and King of Kings, who has loved us with an everlasting love and sealed us with an eternal promise. It’s our chance to worship our merciful Savior and to praise our all-sufficient Yahweh with even the smallest words” (Rachel, 2023)[1].
God’s love for us is so great. It is the only thing that will save us from death. (Psalm 86:13 CSB) When we share our testimony with others, we give them the opportunity to see God’s work in action. It helps them see His salvation in a hurting world. Our friends, acquaintances, peers, coworkers are able to get a first-hand glimpse at Christ’s joy through us and this may open up a world completely new to them. Sharing God’s glory through our story may open their minds to questions about Christ, to whisperings about a life filled with joy, to the possibility to living with happiness, and encourage them to want to find better for themselves. Better equaling Christ alone.
Matthew 28:19 commands us, “Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (CSB). The way we follow this directive from Christ, Himself, is to share our account of knowing Him. And, who doesn’t like talking about themselves?
The only thing I like talking about more than coffee is talking about Christ. I can tell you about the best coffee shops to visit in my hometown, where to buy the best roasted coffee in Bozeman, MT, which commercial brand is my favorite, and what coffee not to buy when traveling. But get me started talking about Christ and how he saved me and what He, more importantly, can do for your life and we will be visiting for quite a while. I have witnessed the majesty of God’s unconditional love and it is no small thing so I am going to shout it from the mountaintops until He returns so that all the people I meet can behold His goodness themselves.
Prayer:
Lord, Your magnificence in my life is indescribable. Your glory shines through every encounter, discouragement, celebration, and event that has occurred in my life and I am forever thankful for Your mercy and grace. Help me to be able to share the story of your goodness with everyone I meet. I pray You open the hearts of the people You put in my path so that they are able to hear and understand what it means to be loved by You. I pray You purposely place people in my life who need to hear the story of Your redemption and how their lives can be full of joy when they ask You to enter in. Thank you, Lord, for desiring to know me and save me from eternal death.
Today’s Challenge:
Begin to think about your testimony. Write down some areas where you really saw God work in your life? How would you share one of these stories with someone you work with? What are some ways you can incorporate part of your testimony into a conversation with a non-believer?
Rachel. (2023, February). The Reb. Retrieved from The Rebelotion; Rebelling Against Low Expectations: https://www.therebelution.com/blog/2023/02/why-your-testimony-matters/