Can I tell you a story?

Testimonies hold such incredible power. So many think they are quiet, simple tales of a moment or a prayer that happened long, long ago, but they are not. A testimony is a bold account of all the Lord has captured and transformed and restored and moved in you, from the first moment you met Him to this very minute. Every one of my brothers and sisters have one. And they are as beautiful and unique and complex as the patterns on your fingers.

I recently got the chance to listen as a friend figured out her testimony for the first time. And let me tell you... hearing what God has done in the minds and hearts of His chosen ones brings incredible hope and encouragement for both listener and speaker alike.

"Taste and see that the LORD is good;
blessed is the man who takes refuge in him." ~ Psalm 34:8

So here is a small part of mine:
He found me first. As a child I stood surrounded in His peace without even knowing who He was. Even after I learned, it took a long time before I began to really walk in that knowledge.
In junior high and into high school my life became consumed by a lie that ate up my entire being. It crippled and paralyzed me spiritually, emotionally, relationally. In some ways this was what I wanted -- an excuse to feel inadequate for all that God has for us. So even while I saw that the Lord lived and moved in me, I huddled in the illusion that I was handicapped and weak.
But my God had something better. He revealed to me the blessing of Christ-centered relationships, which ended forever my self-inflicted alienation. He tore apart the lies that had taken hold of me, replacing them with His truth and His strength. He brought me two beautiful girls who even now never fail to encourage me with their lives, and together we learned to pursue Christ with all we are, growing together in the assurance of His love, and making it our mission to "consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds" (Hebrews 10:24). And from them I met even more friends with whom I could pour out my heart and fill theirs with encouragement. He made my church and my high school a place of worship and safety.
When I got to college I found myself in a battlefield that incites me to pursue Him more intently each day. He equips me with an incomprehensible love for people that can only come from Him. He has filled my life with teachers of every sort, showing in their own way what it means to run with perseverance the race set before us. And I am learning how to listen and follow His voice despite my own lack of strength. I am learning to recognize and use the gifts the Lord has given me to glorify Him and encourage the Body.
The Lord moves so much so quickly -- sometimes it seems impossible to keep up! Amen. Hallelujah!