Testimony is one of the most important ways to share your story of faith in Jesus Christ. During your journey into Christianity, you might have heard many compelling stories. How the Lord’s words influenced people and saved them from misery. A Christian Testimony, in simple words, is a conversion story of a person from being a non-Christian to walking hand in hand with God. Every time you tell this story to your audience, you are honoring God and showing your gratitude towards him for saving you.
Through your testimony, you tell people how the Lord has blessed and encouraged you. He transformed you for the better. Christian testimony goes beyond that. It goes into the realm of your relationship with God. You are giving them proof of the existence of Jesus.Just like every other testimony, your story is unique as well. Whether they sound radical or calm profession of faith – they all have one thing in common. They all depict God’s love and mercy.
How to Write a Christian Testimony
Even if you are sharing your testimony in front of a group, there are some essential points you need to know when you outline your speech. So, you will say, exactly what you plan to say. Writing your testimony down beforehand will help you out. Here is a gist of how to write your Christian testimony.
Study The Bible for References
Before writing your testimony, it is better to get an idea of what to include. Refer to the Bible for examples. There are many accounts in the Bible of people sharing their experiences. The most well-known is the Apostle Paul giving his testimony before King Agrippa.
Paul went from imprisoning and killing Christians to serving Jesus and writing half of the New Testament.
He goes on to talk about his life before the conversion. He opens up about his life and upbringing; and what led him to the road of conversion in Damascus.
He narrates his miraculous encounter with Jesus and how his companions led him to Damascus when he lost his sight. Next, he describes his baptism, which washed away his sins, and he shows his obedience to Christ as an apostle.
Say Your Prayers
Since you are witnessing to non-Christians about your divine journey and the main purpose is to honor God and show Him gratitude. You should pray for guidance from the Holy Spirit before setting pen to paper. It will strengthen your faith in the Lord.
Talk with the Lord about writing your testimony, and He will guide you in your words. Ask him what He wants you to include and allow him to help you share what He wants.
Outline 3 Parts of your Testimony
Similar to Paul’s testimony, follow a three-point approach when writing and communicating your testimony.
First, create an outline of your life before your conversion to Christianity. Then move on to how you discovered God and succumbed to Him. Lastly, focus on the changes in your life since you converted.
Before
Paint a picture of your life before you surrendered to Christ. Follow the details that relate to your theme and show your need for Christ. Make sure not to sidetrack by dwelling on unnecessary details. Before outlining ask these relevant questions:
- What were you looking for before finding Christ?
- What part of your life before converting will relate most to the non-Christians? What were your actions and attitude towards Christianity before?
- What were your underlying problems, conflicts, and emotions and how did you try to resolve them? How do they let you down?
- What were my insecurities, source of happiness, and what does your life revolve around?
When you are announcing your testimony, communicate in a way that the people hearing you can comprehend how to become a Christian. Your testimony should help them find the way to light.
After detailing about past, give the details of how you found salvation with Jesus. Take the time and jot down the steps and events that led you to trust Christ in the first place.
- Where were you, and what was happening when you heard about Christ?
- What was your initial reaction?
- What were the circumstances that led you to consider Him as your Savior?
- When did you accept Him as your Lord? And why?
After
Don’t suggest unrealistic expectations when emphasizing the changes after you accept Christianity. Show them you still struggle and converting to Christianity does not miraculously eliminate the stresses of life. Instead, focus on the changes in your attitude, character, perspective towards your life and others. Give real-life examples of how Jesus has fulfilled your physical and emotional needs. Consider these points when writing these parts down:
- How is your life different from before?
- What is the purpose of your life now?
- How has conversion impacted you?
- What your relationship with Christ means to you
Avoid Using These Words
Avoid using words and terminologies that the non-Christian might not understand. when you spend more time in Church, you forget that people are not familiar with your new vocabulary.
Especially if some people in your audience are not comfortable with Christianity or Church.
Instead of using dogmatic religious statements, use more common and layman words in your testimony. Your message will become clearer.
Be Honest
Include the important details only. There is no need to exaggerate or sensationalize your story. You don’t need to share the details of your sins and personal misgivings. Relate to your audience with specific examples and real-life events, no matter how boring they sound.
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If you have the time, you can give more information about your life experiences relating to conversion. If you are honest and communicate credible testimony, God will use your words to reach others.
Our Final Thoughts
When you are ready to give testimony, it is important to write it down. Not only for memorizing it, but also to put your relationship with God in perspective. Your individual stories of journey to light might sound evangelistic and unique to you. However, with the choice of right words to develop the flow of the story is as essential as sharing your story. If the God has saved you, then it’s a miracle of faith that deserves to be celebrated.
The goal of this blog is to provide you some guidance when writing a Gospel-centered testimony. The main purpose of writing the Christian testimony is to show what God has done for you. The sacrifices he made for you and why should people turn Him. Read the testimonies that have had a huge impact in your life. Share the relevant verses from the Bible. Do not only showcase the positive changes in your life. Instead, describe how conflicted you felt during specific times, so that people can visualize it.