No Testimony Without the Test

Recently, I heard someone say these wise words which impacted me a lot. "There is no testimony without the test." The person who said this was sharing from the perspective of one who has been in the mission field for many years and has seen the Lord come through for him in the most extreme of circumstances. He has faced head hunters, come face to face with 2000 prisoners, all in the name of bringing the Gospel to people who would have otherwise not have had a chance to hear it. Extreme? Certainly. But it is exactly in those extreme circumstances that he saw God deliver him in nothing short of miraculous ways! [+]

So am I asking you to sell of your valuables, pack your bags and go search the jungles of Borneo for head-hunter tribes? Certainly, if that's where the Lord is calling you. But for most of us, persevering through the test and testifying to God's goodness in our lives start a little closer to home. I have been thinking a lot about our 40-day prayer and fast recently. Many of us struggle through it. We struggle to focus during the one hour, we struggle to make time in the midst of our busyness, we struggle that after praying, we still go back to dealing with the difficult matters that we were facing before praying. So what gives?

Well, the Bible tells us in James 1:2-4 to "Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." God puts us through tests so that we can be refined and testify of His goodness in our lives. What is our response? To persevere through until perseverance finishes its work in us! God has a plan to redeem the weaknesses and ugliness in our lives and to use it for His Glory. But it calls for a response of pressing on from our side. Perseverance is not a final goal that can be won or achieve. It is a process. And God is very much more interested in this process rather than what you achieve in the end. It is this process that transforms you from coal to diamond, that refines you into all that God has called you to be.

But it's not just about passing the test. It's also about pursuing it. One of the things that we worry about when we have to teach at encounter is, "Do I have enough stories to tell?" When was your last experience with the Holy Spirit? When was the last time you saw a tangible manifestation of the Lord's provision for you? When was the last time you were in a situation where only a miracle would have saved you and God came through with it? Well, such testimonies to speak of come only when you allow God to lead you into victory through trials of many kinds! Question is, ARE YOU WILLING TO BE LED? Decide for yourself today!

Joshua Teo