At home, I go to a church that is huge on sharing testimony of what God has done in our lives. Weekly, we hear testimonies of financial provision following the obedience of tithes, almost quarterly we have a whole service dedicated to testimonies, and after every conference or event we hear and share testimonies of how God did miracles in our lives.
My church leaders understand the weight of the verse that says “We overcome by the blood of the lamb and the word of our testimony” (Revelation 12:11). Because the beauty of sharing testimony is that is helps us overcome. We already have the blood of the lamb when we are saved, but God says we need more than that, we need a community of believers to share testimony. It is such a beautiful thing when the truth of a testimony plants a seed in fertile soil in one’s heart that they can then see the fruit growing in their own life.
However, I didn’t always understand this.
Let’s rewind to about 3 years ago. I used to hear miracles of God left and right, but instead of allowing it to stir my faith, and help me overcome, I actually became even more discouraged. Hearing other’s testimonies would lead me to doubt and question God. I would hear miracles of provision, but then ask “Well good for them, but what about mine, God?” And I would hear miracles of the lost coming to salvation, and I would ask “What about those who I’m praying for, God?” Or I would hear about someone being physically healed, and I would ask “but where’s my healing?” Then on top of that, I would question how that verse was true, because I know I have the blood of the lamb, so when I hear this testimony it’s supposed to give me victory too, but I’m not seeing it.
“Uh, hello, is anyone up there? Did you forget about me?”
What was lacking, was faith. The problem was me. I had the wrong perspective, so the position of my heart was wrong, because I didn’t have understanding, so my response was off, and it was the cause of my inability to see the miracle. When I learned is that I was responding wrong, I brought it to God and he showed me how I’m supposed to respond, (and the miracles DID come when I responded correctly), and just this week I have a profound revelation of why this new response is the answer.
I’m going to explain the latter first, that way you can receive this truth in the correct order and not have to learn it over the course of years like I did.
God gave us an easy mathematical solution in order to overcome: how the power of the blood of the lamb, and hear the word of a testimony produces our victory. 1+1=2. Except the devil has twisted this in our hearts and minds through the society we live in. I’m not sure if you have realized this because maybe you live under a rock or something, but ingrained in our society is selfishness and narcissism. This even happens in church, when we don’t want to be generous with our tithes, when someone gets promoted or recognized for serving well, or simply in not being happy for someone when you hear their testimony and instead make it about yourself and ask “but God where’s mine?” That was me. It was all about me and my miracle that I couldn’t even be happy for someone else because it wasn’t for me. This is how the enemy has twisted God’s equation. Because God’s purpose for sharing testimony is to stir up faith in our hearts in order to keep believing for what we’re asking for. Because it is faith that causes mountains to move in your life, and it is through faith that God heals you. Jesus told countless people that is was their “faith that healed them” (Mark 10:52, Luke 8: 49, etc.). It’s also to remind us of how good and great God is, and that he’s the same yesterday, today and forever, and he shows no favoritism but loves all his children equally. So when I hear a testimony of someone else’s healing/ someone else’s miracle, I think about it from this perspective and allow it to stir up my faith, so that through faith I can receive my miracle too.
The response I learned that I’m supposed to have is just simply, “Thank you God.” Thank you God that they received their miracle; thank you God that now I can see it’s possible, because if you could do it for them you can do it for me. Thank you God that mine is sure to happen too! Because now my response isn’t about me or what God did/ didn’t do for me. Now I’m allowing the testimony to stir my faith. I’m seeing it from a new perspective that someone else’s gain does not equate to my loss. Their gain actually adds to my gain because it adds faith to my soul.
The enemy wants us to doubt and question God. He wants to sow seeds of doubts that God doesn’t love you as much, or God likes that person more, or that God simply won’t do that for you because you aren’t good enough. But it’s not about you! That’s just another form of pride, and pride is the very thing that got the devil cast out of heaven in the first place.
But God wants testimony to add to you. He wants it to stir up your faith. To strengthen your trust in him. You just have to look at it through the perspective of who the word says he is (aka how he defines himself) and not how your natural situation causes you to see him as. Don’t look at the way things are in front of you. Look up to him.
And next time you hear a testimony of God doing something in someone else’s life, don’t question him and ask “but what about me?” instead, thank him that he’s showing what he can and will do, because if he can do it for them, and he loves you just as much, then he will do it for you!
