Tues.9.8.15...Sharing Your Story

Yesterday we read about the man born blind. Read again John 9:8-11 and underline the word man. Then notice the progress of faith the blind man had in Jesus from being a mere man. Underline this phrase in 9:17- He is a prophet. Then underline 9:33. Finally underline 9:38. This is what John wants each of his readers to come to. 

1.- Did you underline these words, phrases and verses?

It's important in M3 that you have and use a Bible that you can underline. This helps you to see what a lot of people are blind to. It will help you see key ideas when you come back to the passage later. 

John has also shown us how the Lord uses people to spread his message. We saw this with the woman at the well telling the townspeople about Jesus. "Many of the Samaritans of that town believed in him because of the woman's testimony, 'He told me everything I ever did' John 4:39. And now we see the blind man giving his testimony to others about Jesus and what he did for him- "I once was blind, but now I see!" Use these two points to share how you got saved. 

"I once was blind,"
Here are some questions to help you share how you were blind. What was missing in your life? What was a struggle you were dealing with? These could include emptiness, bitterness, loneliness, guilt, fear of death, insecurity. What did you try to use to fill the hole in your soul? Some ways people use to fill the holes in their souls include work, money and the things money can buy, drugs, food, gambling, relationships, entertainment, sports and sex. 

People love to listen to stories, so present your testimony using a story you remember going through that illustrates such. Also include a key word or two that describes how you were feeling before you came to new life in Christ? (Some of you seasoned veterans have done this before, so this will be easy peasy.) Let me illustrate from my BC days. 
Key phrase- Looking in the mirror at my bloodshot eyes
Key feeling- emptiness
I remember coming home from a party and looking in the mirror and my hollow, bloodshot eyes. I felt so empty. And I remember asking myself, "Is this all there is to life?" Then I guessed that those at the party, who were acting like they were having the time of their lives, were also going home wondering the same thing- "It this all there is to life?"

2.- So write down the key phrase and the key feeling of that time when you were blind to the light of the world- salvation in Christ.

"but now I see."
How did you get saved? Where were you when you came to new life in Christ? Who or what was instrumental in helping you come to the Lord? See if you can also weave in a verse of scripture. Here are some excellent ones-
"There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death" Prov.14:12.
"For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord" Rom.6:23.
Jesus said, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." John 14:6

3.- Write down a phrase that represents where you were when you got saved and also write down a key feeling at the time.

Here's my key phrase and feeling word- Playground / hatred, tears, transformation.
I was kicking around in a pile of autumn leaves in a schoolyard when an overwhelming sense of hatred came over me toward my Christian sister. How could I hate someone who loved me and loved God so much? It was as if God was holding up a mirror so I could see how messed up I was. I went to my knees in tears and cried out to God. It wasn't a fancy prayer, but it was from a broken heart. God heard me and forgave me. I got up a transformed person. The wrong things that used to have a hold on me fell off like those autumn leaves I was kneeling in. I discovered that Jesus truly is who he claimed to be- the way, the truth, and the life.

Beware of using Christianese- "I realized I was a reprobate and needed to be washed in the blood of the lamb."

Beware of being a boring story teller. Don't go on and on. And don't get sidetracked with unnecessary details. "I will never forget the day I got saved. It was a fall day. I think it was late October, but maybe it was early November. Anyway, I know it was a Sunday and there were lots of leaves on the ground. I have thought maybe I could find out the exact date if I could only find the weather for each Sunday in the fall of 1976. It's amazing what you can find out just by doing a Google search, but so far I haven't figured out...why nobody likes to listen to me." 

What if you got saved as a child or didn't have a pagan past? Focus on how Christ helps you now. Or share a story of a friend you know who got saved from the things the person you are sharing with may be struggling with. 

How do you get good at sharing your testimony? Practice! So call up one of your wingmen (one of the men in your fire team) this week and share your testimony with him. 

Want a couple minutes of help in preparing your two minute testimony? Here ya go!

Ismael took a good opportunity to share his testimony with a co-worker recently. Here's what he wrote-  "Through work the last couple weeks, I was given the opportunity to mentor someone underneath me. I took it, as my co worker riding along with me, showing him the proper ways. I also was given an opportunity to share my testimony with him on how I came to Christ. Also his eyes were caught on verses I had taped in front of my glove compartment." Excellent Ismael!

This is a test question: What do you do as soon as you finish commenting on the blog? Correct! You go over to the scoreboard and put up your points. Thanks for doing such. (No scoreboard, no sleep? :)