We’ve spent a lot of time introducing ourselves. Time to get to the stories of others! We’re still in the process of processing testimonies & using them to create blog posts. So, in the meantime, we’ll do a recap of some of the testimony snippets we’ve shared so far. You can find these snippets on our Facebook or Instagram pages…or you can just read them here. 😏 Whichever.

I think we’ll start off with a recap of 2018’s posts. The testimonies we gather tend to fall into three categories. Obviously, we have stories that inspire & encourage:

When did you really become aware of God?

“I don’t remember a time when it was just kind of a ‘light bulb’ moment. My mom did a really good job from as far back as I can remember at loving Jesus & talking about Jesus constantly. So, as a little child, I remember believing that there was a God. That He existed. And that He was good.” (Arkansas)

What do you wish people knew about the church?

“The true church has a desire to represent Christ well. And they’re going to fail in doing that. So many people see the imperfections in the ambassador, and they go, ‘I’m out! I’m leaving church altogether!’ And they walk away. I want to advocate that the true church is truly trying to represent Jesus. And we’re going to be imperfect – but that’s the point of the Gospel. We are imperfect, and our Redeemer is perfect. That’s our hope & assurance. Don’t pitch a perfect church. Pitch a perfect Savior, and then do your best to represent Him faithfully.” (Arkansas)

“We used to call them our scared verses, when we were little. Those were verses that my mom would grab, and she would pray those over us as she tucked us back into bed. Those were verses that she did her best to keep before us & kind of massage into our hearts and minds.” Did it work? “Oh, yeah! It was always amazing. I remember the peace that those verses provided. We would often go straight to sleep after going through them.” (Arkansas)

Sometimes a post is just something that we see – and would like to share.

(1/2) “I remember it very vividly. I was 3 years old, in April of 1991, and [my mother] was reading to me about the crucifixion & the resurrection. And I just knew in my heart something wasn’t right with me. And I just kept asking questions, and she just kept answering them and explaining them to me. I finally got to where I told her, “Mom, I need Jesus.” She prayed with me, and I asked Jesus to come into my life and save me. That’s such a vivid time in my mind where I know that’s where I began to know Christ. But I say ‘began to know Christ’ because – especially as a 3-year-old – but anybody who just accepts Christ for the first time or gets their first exposure to Jesus doesn’t have everything figured out. They don’t have all the answers.”

(2/2) “Around the time I was 7, I was finally able to get baptized. I wanted to do that for a while, but my parents wanted me to make sure I knew what I was doing.”Do you remember the process leading up to you wanting to be baptized? “I do. I knew that Jesus was my Savior, and I knew that I needed Him. And I knew what the Bible said about baptism. That it is something we are commanded to do. It is something we are commanded to obey. And I wanted to do that as that proclamation that Jesus is my Lord and my Savior. I want to identify with Him in that. I look back at my baptism a lot, and I think of Philippians 3:10. I think that’s what the picture of baptism is supposed to be. I think, even at an early age, I realized that – even if I couldn’t quite put it into words. So I was very grateful to be able to follow in that obedience.” (Arkansas)

“Growing up, how I dealt with conflict was I would just leave. Early on in our marriage, that was a characteristic of me. If she made me mad, I would just leave. That was how I dealt with it. God offered me many opportunities to deny myself, and enabled me to count her more significant than myself. There were many moments where I never left. By the grace of God, I would sit down and actually have an adult conversation with my wife.” (Arkansas)

“I was four. We had moved to [a suburb of Denver], but what I remember is the church van picking me up. Somehow, they let the church van pick me up. At four! But, what’s so crazy about it is that I remember, at that point, never wanting to leave the church. There was something there. I felt safe. I felt secure. I distinctly remember finding this place of peace. A sanctuary. And I didn’t want to leave. It was a Baptist church, and I remember I would sit down there with Children’s Church, and they would have this invitation. And I would go up every Sunday. ‘I need to get saved! I need to know the Lord!’ I mean, don’t we all?” (Arkansas)

Other than salvation, what is the best thing God has done for you?

“Ultimately, it would probably be my wife coming into my life, because that was a huge turning point in my life. I think of her as my angel.”
(Maine)

“He is kindly and slowly peeling back layers and layers of how self-righteous I am. How much I cling to the things of this world, as opposed to Him.”
(Arkansas)

What are you most thankful God saved you from?

“Religion. And I don’t mean that in the sense that, ‘the church did me wrong’, or anything like that. Growing up, I attended [church]. I went. It became a check-off. ‘Oh, I did this. I’m moral. I make good decisions. I get good grades. I’ve never done drugs. I don’t drink…’ It just became very religious for me – and that’s not because of anybody else. I didn’t pursue Him. Religion took over because there wasn’t relationship, because I didn’t partake in that. But I’m just so thankful that, through the most difficult thing that I’ve ever experienced, God literally surrounded me with His love and brought me back to Him. He became my one and only, first. He became the relationship that I needed, that I knew I couldn’t live without.”
(Missouri)

“One of my heroes, her name’s Melissa, said, “The Holy Spirit is the crescendo of the cross. In His coming, He swallowed up loneliness forever.” That’s really one of my favorite things that God saved me from. I know that I never have to be alone, and that I’m never without a friend. I’ve got the Living God always on my side. Always for me. Always working everything together for my good. I love that I have a friend in Jesus.”
(California)

You know what is one of the absolute BEST things about our calling? We get to help write the story. Your story. God’s story. Our story. ❤️ It’s amazing, and we’re so thankful.

I don’t know if you know this, but God’s an amazing writer. A phenomenal storyteller. He’s the best. And He has a fascinating, intriguing, inspiring, heartbreaking, adventurous, redemptive, breathtaking story He’s writing. Through you. He loves you, and He is for you, and He’s writing the. Best. Love story. Ever. Right now. In this time. It’s your life. Live it up.

Aren’t those great?! 🙌🏼 We collected those testimonies from the end of October through the end of 2018. Any words in italics are ours. The rest were recorded testimonies of others. I’m sure you’ve noticed that most of them are from Arkansas residents – though we slipped a few other states in there. We were just getting started. 😉

I’m going to compile the rest of 2018’s posts into another post or two, then tackle 2019’s to date, before moving onto new testimonies we’ve gathered. I hope you’ll stick with us. God is writing the most amazing story. Through each of us. #GatherRound #ShareTheStories #SeeWhatGodHasDone #FromSeaToShiningSea

Interested in sharing your story? Like what we’re doing, and want to help keep the campfires burning? Want to offer a word of encouragement? We’d love to hear from you!