Testimony, Part One

I've had this draft saved for several weeks now, but I couldn't finish it. I felt like I was leaving parts out, not giving some parts enough credit, and just getting bogged down in WORDS.

But I haven't ever really told my testimony, let alone written it down. I've given five-minutes talks about where I've come from, I've hit the highlights, and I've shared bits and pieces of intimate moments that the Lord and I have shared. All have culminated into what most of my testimony is about, but they're not all in one place. Every part of my story overlaps the other parts.

So here is part one of my testimony. The beginning.

Church service. I didn't go.
Bible class. Nope.
Vacation bible school. Not present.
I didn't learn the books of the bible until I was in high school (and I still probably can't straight-up list them for you.)
I didn't sing "Father Abraham" or "This Little Light of Mine".
I didn't make crosses out of popsicle sticks to be put on the refrigerator.
None of it.

Sundays morning were spent on the couch, most times in my pajamas, listening to my dad teach me, my brother and sister about Jesus. There were no time constraints. We began when everyone was coherent enough and ended when my mom started to fix lunch.

I grew up hearing the name of Jesus without ever stepping into a building.

Why? (Image you are watching a movie and the main character has a flashback. This is what this next section is like.)

It began with my parents because let's face it, our parents' testimonies run into ours. (Mind you, this is from my perspective. You'll have to ask my dad for specific details.)

They both grew up going to church every time the doors were open. They grew up believing certain things about God, not by their own choosing but by what they heard others in the church say. Some truth, some not. Somewhere along the way, my dad realized that not everything he thought he knew about God was truth and he questioned those things. And that's when God moves the most.

To make a long story short, the things that God was teaching my dad made people uncomfortable at the church my parents were attending. And through a series of events, my parents decided that they wanted to provide their children (that's me :) an atmosphere where we could ask questions and learn openly. What better place than our home.

Side note: Never have I thought of my parents as spiteful people. Their decision to have church in our home was a very personal decision and by no means did they choose this out of disregard for others.

Flashback over and we zoom back into my childhood.
Lately, God has been blowing me away by how much I remember about those morning bible studies. Back then, I had trouble staying awake, paying attention, and even acting like I was paying attention. It is only through His wonderful grace that I am reminded of the concrete truths I learned.

I remember one particular Sunday morning when dad was trying to get us to understand the whole point of the bible. When my dad is teaching something, he asks you questions to get you to his point. Rarely does he simply state his point. He wants you to have this light bulb moment. It is sometimes frustrating, but very effective. Anyway, after what seemed like the whole morning (and probably was because we kids were sometimes non-responsive), we finally discovered what the whole point of the bible is. You ready?

Jesus.

There was no light bulb that went off that day for me. But here is where God is so good: these past couple months, I've been learning so much about who God is and what his purpose is. Years later, the light bulb moment has occurred: His purpose always points to the person of Jesus. And so does the bible. And I can point back to that day on the couch in my flannel pajamas and say, "God was planting seeds in me."

That's just an example of the things I learned at home on Sunday mornings. We went through the whole Old Testament. My dad created this awesome timeline that summed up major events in the bible. It started with Creation, Fall, Flood and ended with Jesus, Apostles, Believers. (Forgive me that I don't remember all of it.) We went through the kings era, much like a history lesson. And also several of the gospels.

I have never and will never regret not attending church services growing up. God has taught me that His church is everywhere, not just in a building on Sundays. And we were being the church back then, the five of us.

God used (and is still using) that time in our life to it's utmost potential. I'm so thankful for my parents listening to His leading.

That is the foundation for my walk with the Lord. I would love to hear yours!

Note: I probably won't write my testimony in consecutive blogs, but I intend to link the others on each new blog. So keep a look out for the next part of my testimony. We've got a ways to go.

The weekend (#21)

I had a great girl weekend. I spent it all with my friends from high school. It's so amazing how much we've changed and grown into ourselves. But we can still revert to our teen years and remember how silly and crazy we were. What got us together, you ask? A wedding, of course! My best friend in high school married her high school sweetheart. That's right, eight-ish years together. I couldn't be happier for them! Here's the highlights starting with Friday night:

Dinner & mustaches

                 Rayne & me                                                               Kaitlin & me

    

Beautiful centerpieces!

Yummy favors! (no one else sat at our table so we took more than one)

It's nice that I don't have to scramble over other girls to catch a bouquet anymore! :)

Isn't she radiant?!

And they lived happily ever after! I just love weddings.