"God has given you a Life message to share. "Your lives are echoing the Master's Word...The news of your faith in God is out. We don't even have to say anything more--you're the message!" 1 Thessalonians 1:8
God wants to speak to the world through you.
Your Life Message includes your testimony. Your testimony is the story of how Christ has made a difference in your life. He wants you to share your story with others. Sharing your testimony is an essential part of your mission on earth because it is unique.
Personal stories are also easier to relate to than principles, and people love to hear them. Shared stories build a relational bridge that Jesus can walk across from your heart to theirs.
Your testimony:
1, What my life was like before I met Jesus.
2, How I realized I needed Jesus.
3, How I committed my life to Jesus.
4, The difference Jesus has made in my life.
Your life Message includes your life lessons. The second part of your life message is the truths that God has taught you from experiences with him. We must learn from the life lessons of one another. The Bible says, " A warning given by an experienced person to someone willing to listen is more valuable than....jewelry made of the finest gold."
Your Life Message includes sharing your godly passions. God passionately loves some things and passionately hates other things. As you grow closer to him, he will give you a passion for something he cares about deeply so you can be a spokes man for him in the world.
You cannot keep yourself from talking about what you care most.
God gives some people a godly passion to champion a cause. God uses passionate people to further his kingdom. God gives us different passions so that everything he wants done in the world will get done.
We must listen to and value each other's life message because nobody can say it all.
Your Life Message includes the Good News. "the Good News shows how God makes people right with himself--that it begins and ends with faith.
The Good News is that when we trust God's grace to save us through what Jesus did, our sins are forgiven, we get a purpose for living, and we are promised a future home in heaven.
Most important, you must learn to love lost people the way God does. God has never made a person he didn't love. Everybody matters to him.
We must care about unbelievers because God does. Love leaves no choice. As long as you know one person who doesn't know Christ, you must keep praying for them, serving them in love, and sharing the Good News.
What are you willing to do so that the people you know will go to heaven? Invite them to church? Share your story? Give them this book? Take them a meal? Pray for themevery day until they are saved?
Your mission field is all around you. Don't miss the opportunities God is giving you.
Is anyone going to be in heaven because of you? Will anyone in heaven be able to say to you , "I want to thank you. I'm here because you cared enough to share the Good News with me"?
That's why spreading the Good News is so important; you only have a short time to share your life message and fulfill your mission." PDL, Chapter #37
Once again I had not thought of things in this light. I have been testifying as opportunities present themselves (not to the extent listed above). During those times, I have thought that I would be much better at testifying when I learn (and retain) more, when I can quote scripture passages. Now I see "my story" as something much more important to relate to others, than any passage I can quote.
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ReplyDeleteThis comment was posted by Doug Eshelman:
ReplyDeletefeel you don't have anything to share - the devil trying to keep me silent: remember approaching a couple of friends to share the good news and they politely rejected me - has dampened my enthusiasm for cold calling people - when I think of it as the devil putting obstacles in my way I need to remember the rejection I have had in my career and how I have been able to overcome that - keep moving on; life message testimony: it is rather humorous and I do enjoy sharing the story; personal testimony is more effective than a sermon: I can relate to this statement due to folks warmly receiving my testimony story; sadly, we never learn from a lot that happens to us: a depressing fact that is also frustrating when applied to me; sharing your Godly passion: still don't know what this is - need to revisit the chapters on "shape"; you must learn to love lost people the way God does: not sure I buy into this statement - I think we are unable to love as purely as God does; will anyone in heaven be able to say to me "I want to thank you for teaching me the Good News" - that is motivating and I certainly pray that I can influence my kids to capture it some day -