Madison’s question to Matthew: What is the importance of sharing testimonies? How did you process yours?

As I think about it, the embracing of “testimonies” is a unique thing to the Protestant faith. Sure, testimony is given at a trial in court, yet in most cases, you wouldn’t use the term in conversation with a friend or random person – it is a Protestant thing.

I took part in a Catholic studies class a few months ago as a Protestant representative – they were engaging in an understanding of the various Christian streams. To begin my time, I simply shared my testimony, letting them know that I would use the common terms that I would typically hear when a Protestant shares their testimony. This would give them an understanding of my tradition and allow them to ask questions about terms and ideas that I shared in my testimony that they may be unfamiliar with. I’ll never forget one student’s question: “Does everyone in your church have a testimony?” Of all the questions I was expecting, this was not one of them.

So, does everyone have a testimony? Do you have a testimony? How would you articulate it?

“Evidence or proof provided by the existence or appearance of something.”

“A public recounting of a religious conversion or experience.”

“A solemn declaration.”

We all have a story. It is unique to us. “All the world’s a stage, And all the men and women merely players; They have their exits and their entrances, and one man in his time plays many parts, his acts being seven ages. At first, the infant, mewling and puking in the nurse’s arms.” Shakespeare “As You Like It” Act 2 Scene 7

So why do we, as Protestants, insist on sharing testimonies? What is it about them the helps to shape us as followers of Jesus? Why should I be interested in your story? Why should you care about my story?

First of all, I would suggest that the bible models this idea for us. How often do we read in the Psalms or the Prophets the term “Remember”. Remember what God has done. Remember how he found you and picked you up. When you children ask, remember to tell them…

Our stories, our testimonies, are part of our remembering. They help us to not forget, and we can be encouraged as others remember what God has done in their lives.

As a community we are stronger as we hear each other’s stories of faith. In the times before electricity and gadgets (or so I’m told), families and communities would gather to hear stories. Stories of the past, to remind each other about life. The stories held them together, made them a community. In the same way, our testimonies hold us together with our common focus on Christ.

And, they stretch us. I can’t tell you how many times my faith and understanding of God has grown as I hear how someone else has experienced God. Sometimes it has caused me to tilt my head and wonder if this can really be true, and yet I can’t argue with someone’s testimony, it is their story, their reality. Stories of God appearing in dreams, speaking through audible prompts and causing people to do things that seem to not make sense in the moment, and yet reveals itself to be right after the fact. As I pull together the many testimonies I have heard over the years, my understanding of the character of God and how he chooses to interact has grown in some amazing ways for which I am grateful.

So, how have I processed my testimony? First of all, let me start my saying that I love my testimony. I probably couldn’t always have said that but I can now. I love it because it is mine. God has intersected my life in a way unique to me, he has shown his love to me in a way that I can relate to it based on my personality. You can probably infer from this that I am saddened when Christians say that they don’t have a “very good testimony.” For me, the love of Christ is so compelling that anyone who believes in him should be overjoyed with whatever their testimony sounds like, because none of us deserves his love – Grace!

And so, as I ponder and share my testimony, I have simply looked to those moments in life where God has met me in distinct ways that have moved me to new levels of understanding and commitment to follow him.

Praying a prayer of salvation at age 8 at Camp Crossroads. Being baptized in grade 9 (and sharing my testimony before all the adults at church!) Choosing to step away from friendships in grade 11 that were distracting me from faith. Engaging with a mentor in university to guide my faith and learning to embrace spiritual practices as a discipline rather than when I simply felt like it. Electing to mentor/disciple other guys who were younger to help them deepen their faith which in turn has deepened mine. Stepping away from a banking career as I heard the prompting of the Holy Spirit. Choosing to become a pastor even though it wasn’t my career path of choice. Electing to embrace a Lead Pastor role even though I felt inadequate to do it well.

The more I learn about God and his character and the way he engages with creation, the more I realize I don’t know God that well, and so the more I lean into what God would have for me to comprehend, which in turn causes me to work harder at listening to the Spirit’s promptings. The bigger God get’s in my understanding of his complexities, to more I simply rest in the fact that “he’s got this.” It is not for me to control, it is simply for me to follow and say yes. Whether he has decades more for me to do, or if my piece will end soon. I’m good with God. And because of Jesus, God is good with me. And that is my testimony to date.

So what is your testimony? And who have you shared it with recently?

For the kingdom.

Matthew’s question to Madison: How is your current structured journey of doing a MTS degree enhancing your faith?

I wrote a blog a while ago on starting my Masters of Theology at Tyndale Seminary. Currently, I’m in the thick of only my second course for a Master’s of Theology. This course is on the book of Psalms, and workload has definitely been upped from doing an undergrad. Over the 12-weeks of the course, we have to write a reflection on all 150 psalms – that’s about 2-3 reflections a day. So there’s really no mental or time break from the course since you can’t afford to miss a day of reading and writing. Between the structure of my first course and this one, how have I noticed it enhancing my faith? The answer is two-fold – it has and it hasn’t. Let me start with how I’m noticing gaps, and then end off with how I have found it encouraging and enlightening.

With my current course, to write a reflection on each psalm, there’s a guiding question to answer after reading the commentary. When I first began, this whole process took an hour per psalm, but thankfully, that process has become more efficient. Since there are so many psalms to reflect on each day, this process has temporarily replaced opening my Bible and actively journaling throughout the week. Sure, when reading the commentary, I also read the psalm, but my focus is more on the words of the commentator than the psalm itself because I know that I have to write something for the assignment. Knowing this is just a season, and that it’s coming to an end soon, allows me to be okay with that since I’m still learning about who God is. But I have noticed a theme where the time I don’t open my Bible for a period of time my craving for it has increased.

Beyond that, this process has been incredibly beneficial to my spiritual life. I work really well within a structure, and the courses guide the direction I learn. Am I the only one who gets confused when choosing a book of the Bible to dive into for personal devotions? In the school setting, I find that I go deeper into that the topics or books we go through than I would ever go on my own. For example, the first course I took was Worship and Liturgy – I have learned so much about the Church, how the service can be structured to bring the congregation through a story, and how it is all an invitation from God. I now enter into church each weekend with a transformed perspective, especially taking note that I’m simply accepting God’s initiative, as well as noticing that I am not worshiping God alone, but with a whole group of people.

Through both of the courses so far, the main question that I’m finding being asked is, “What does this say about God’s character?” What an important question. We are nothing without Him, and I want to know more of who He is. And the more I go deeper into who He is, the more I fall in love with Him, and the more times I simply say “thank you” since there really are no other words to adequately express my gratitude.

I understand the academic world is not for everyone, and that is completely okay – we’re all wired differently, and we can all learn so much from one another. A mentor of mine showed me the 9 spiritual pathways, and ‘intellectual’ would be number 3 or 4 for me. That self-awareness, of how I connect best with God, encourages and challenges me to find the spaces that fit my top 3 so that I am continually and consistently in a setting where I feel connected with God – none of us want God to feel distant. That’s not to say we shouldn’t push ourselves to engage in the spaces that are less comfortable for us, but when we are actively in the spaces we feel closest to God, we have more energy to lean into the other practices.

Since ‘intellectual’ is high on my list, it makes sense for me to be in the academic world, and it also makes sense as to why the structure of the courses are drawing me closer to Him – it’s enhancing my faith.

To finish off, here are two questions to consider:

What are you learning about God’s character?

In what spaces do you feel most connected to God? And how can you actively move and live in those spaces?