“And this is the TESTIMONY, that God has borne concerning HIS SON . . THE TESTIMONY that GOD gave us eternal life, and THIS LIFE IS IN HIS SON.”
(1 John 5:10b,11)
Testimonies from brothers and sisters
Folks in big towns and small towns: in towns in Madison County, Taylor County, Jefferson county and in towns all around the world, have stories. They hold, in their heart, certain stories that tell of something great or awesome or ,they hold , in their heart, stories that tell of something dreadful or fearful. These are all called “testimonies”. Testimonies talk tall . They use lots of words to explain ONE particular thing. The words lure our listening hearts and minds to focus on this ONE thing that the speaker or writer is promoting . We listen , We believe then , We start to look up to that One thing.
Lots of people say “testimonies are just a church thing.” They are often hearing what the preacher calls “a testimony” in their church. These Sunday speakers spout out many words to simply say “I got saved “. But they are not the only ones saying they got something and they are not the only ones tall enough to tell about it. All kind of folks everywhere are talking testimonies. Everywhere someone is trying to convince someone that their ” ONE thing” made a difference. Medical folks in hospitals are using words to say “this surgery works”. Food folks are using words to say “this food is delicious” Folks in education are using words to say “this curriculum teaches”. Folks with instuments, or toys, or cars , or houses, or dogs, or guns, or a million other things are giving “testimony” or “testify”that THIS particular thing is the BEST!.
Testimonies run across the world like wide roads paved with many words to secure the path. As we believe the testimonials, we go here and there toward many pursuits, riding along with the directions given from words. We take up the religion, we sign up for the surgery, we buy the food , we fish with the best fishing pole or we buy the best gun. The roads are very wide and the stories very broad that lead us to go toward ONE thing .. The ONE thing spoken of or read about.
So it is with all the stories layerered and paved throughout our journey in life. We hear and we go .. . .. words load and take us there. . .There ..smack dab ,face to face with that ONE thing.. the one thing most talked about in the testimony.
Now, when exaggeration and lie enter testimonials, like expanders in the asphalt, the road grows yet wider. The hearer can be led to a very dark place or a deadly cliff with a testimony, here , Testimonies become wide and crooked and full of darkness . These words begin deafening the hearer to truth so he begins walking broadly the way of the lie. Even with a very small story can convince someone to fall from great heights onto an abyss for a road.
While destinations differ, the word “glory”, is the pavement of the road in every testimony.
The often unsaid word “Glory” is the substance of every story. Who or what is going to get the glory? Who or What is going to get the glory in this story. . Is the most relevant question to ask of a story .
Is it this man telling the story who grabbed God, this doctor that found the cancer, this gun that shot the deer , or this bait that snagged the snapper. In every testimony , every story, there is ONE THING that gets most the glory. The one who gets the Glory . is the action player of the story.
In Genesis God begins His story and His story has but two characters: Man and God. The plot is simple in His story. God has created man out of His image of Glory and man rebels against His Glory and from His Glory. But Father God is not done with His children. He loves them back to Himself for His Glory. Now the devil , continues to try to interrupt the whole story . He says that man can write his own story and perhaps steal some of God’s glory. So He plants the questions in man’s head till man begins to wonder : “Did God really” write this particular story.? But , the devil is the liar. He hides behind us in his longing for Daddy’s glory.
So it is , when the devil interrupts God’s story, the road of testimonies get wide. They get so very wide that, in a story , it is often no longer about God’s glory but about mans desire for glory or man’s gain of stolen counterfeit glory from the devil. This is the wide road. This road leads to destruction.
No matter what realm in religion or medicine or education, when the glory of the story is not for God , it is wide! And a wide road is a dangerous road. In truth, it is a deadly road.
But God intersects every wide road . God intersects the plan of the devil with the everpresent detour of Jesus’s narrow road. He intersects every wide road so that His children always , always have a way to escape.(1) And, in their escape from giving glory to another, they can enter into giving glory to God. They can enter the narrow road.
This is a beautiful and glorious place , this walk on the narrow road.(2) It is here where we find a “Good Testimony”. It is where Children of God write Stories of His Glories into one another’s lives, gracing them with the Spirit.
In Stories for His Glory , the words run across the land and change every sorrow into a praise, every ugliness into a beauty, every dullness and death into a vibrant color of life . It is a good news, a gospel story. (2)
A “good testimony ” is one that begins and ends with God’s claim on a thing for His glory. This is the story that deserves an Amen. These are stories Our Daddy God has me chase down and record as I run along ever so dependent, on this narrow road.
So again , I run simply as a child with a pen. I run with what Daddy has given me ,for this time, to hold. And as He whispers ” write it here” I return to this door with the Good News from previous bolder children of our Glory Full Daddy. (3)
In this door others , the Father of us all has chosen the town of Greenville . He has chosen the precious brothers and sisters of my church: those of whom live on the narrow road and possess, as a treasure, many many many stories of His glories. They will not be put to shame.(4)
- Psalm 147:15 He sends out His command to the earth; His word runs swiftly. 1 Cor 10:13 No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful and He will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation He will provide the way of escape that you may be able to endure it.
- Matthew 7:14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life and only a few find it. Luke 9:26 For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words , of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when he comes in His glory and the Glory of the Father and of the Holy angels. (here the Lord Jesus tells us it is His testimony that is to be promoted and it is because of His glory)
- Psalm 45:1 My heart overflows wit a pleasing theme; I address my verses to my king (Jesus) my tongue is like a pen of a ready scribe.
- Psalm 119:46 As we speak your testimonies, we will not be put to shame.
