John 4:39-45

Today we approach a smaller, but still essential, text that is fundamental in both Jesus’ ministry and Gramazin’s mission as a testimony-sharing platform. Open your Bibles to John 4:39-45 and read before continuing. For an even deeper dive, open your copy of Take Every Passage to Prayer Volume 2, The Gospels by Charles Wagner.

Last week, Jesus explained that we should sustain ourselves on the will of God alone. We discussed how the disciples may have felt uncomfortable because of how Jesus was interacting with the Samaritan woman, but they trusted Jesus and His will. Jesus then used the metaphor of a farmer reaping his harvest in order to represent a reality of following God’s will. The seeds that we plant won’t always be harvested by us. Sometimes, following God’s will means working for the good of future generations.

We pick back up in our story with the narrator shifting his focus to the Samaritan woman. When she left the well that Jesus was at, she ran back into the city and exclaimed  “He told me all that I ever did” (John 4:39 ESV). Her testimony inspires some of these Samaritans, a group of social outcasts, to seek out Jesus and ask Him to stay in the city for two days longer. Jesus obliges. The perspective of the group of Samaritans changes after spending some time with Jesus. They say that their belief in Jesus is no longer because of the Samaritan woman’s testimony, but because of their own encounter with the true, living God. Jesus then leaves Samaria to head north to Galilee.

This story is a perfect example of the function and power of testimonies. Testimonies function as an invitation to consider what God could accomplish in your life. The Samaritan woman shared her experience with her town, and they were inspired by what happened to her. This curiosity caused them to seek out Christ for themselves, inviting Him into their homes. Once the Samaritans were able to experience a personal relationship with Christ, they were able to decide for themselves what they believe. Testimonies have real, tangible, and important power in evangelism. It only took one woman’s testimony of a personal encounter with Christ to save a whole group of Samaritans.

Seeing your own testimony as an invitation can seem difficult. Most of us don’t have a thrilling conversion story like the Samaritan woman. We may have never seen a miracle, heard a special message from God, or even physically felt His presence. However, I want to ask you to consider whether sharing your testimony is about the story you tell, or whether it’s about the person who you are talking to? Is your testimony about the things that you have done, or about how God has worked in your life? Does a dramatic testimony always convert more people than a mundane one? Luckily, the power of testimonies does not come from our own doing. The Holy Spirit, our Helper and Advisor, empowers our testimonies. Testimonies do not function as a way to aid the Holy Spirit. Testimonies, regardless of their entertainment value, are simply a vector that the Holy Spirit chooses to use to stir people’s hearts, minds, and souls. 

Sharing a testimony is extremely personal and vulnerable, and it is perfectly natural to feel anxious about it, especially if you haven’t done it before. I share my testimony for a living, and I still get nervous almost every time. Some practical steps to take if you want to share your testimony is first to outline it. Mark significant events in your life on a timeline, and try to trace a theme that God keeps showing you. This could be a specific struggle or blessing, a bible passage, a lesson, a person, etc. Once you have your timeline and your traceable theme, write or voice record yourself telling the story. You will feel much more confident sharing your testimony if you know what words you want to say! Lets pray and ask our Heavenly Father to pour out His Spirit on us and inspire our testimonies.

Father, today we pray for your children who are lost. We know that you are endlessly pursuing them, through the Holy Spirit, and we submit ourselves to you in order to help accomplish that mission. Like the Samaritan woman, give me such a heart and a passion for your Son that I can’t help but share with others. Jesus, thank you for your example and sacrifice that enables me to share the love of God. Holy Spirit, empower my testimony to stir the hearts of your people, so that they may seek you in response. In Jesus’ name, Amen.