This Is NOT the Time to End Testimony Service

Let's face it, some of us have been delivered from some dastardly deeds! There is a somewhat viral video going around of a woman testifying. Her testimony seemed to reach into the bowels of her past but before she could continue, she was cut off. Here are my thoughts on that:
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About that testimony gone wrong…
Originally, I agreed to end her time at the mic. Then I thought about it...because we’re testifying we want people to know the real goodness of the Lord...even the ugly truth.
 
Still, there’s a tactful way to say even the most salacious things. So I would have taken the mic and asked her to sum it up if she could. I would’ve interviewed her at the mic (though her responses probably wouldn’t have changed).
 
Also, this is a great time to teach exactly how to tell a testimony in church. It’s easy to do away with it altogether, but when it’s done right it serves a great purpose whether told in church, on social media or person to person.
 
Pastor Robert Thibodeau has written a pamphlet about testifying in church. These are his pointers bout properly testifying in public.
 
To be frank, the church did the right thing. In a mixed audience, the church bears the responsibility of protecting the innocence and integrity of everyone in attendance. Ending the testimony was the right thing to do.
 
As stated above, This is the perfect opportunity for that church and the church at large to refine the art of the testimony. It’s not just a service time filler or devotional, but it is the final report of the Lord as mentioned in Isaiah 53. It is our way of doing as Jesus commanded Peter to “strengthen the brethren”. 

In fact, Jesus commanded testimony in the case of the demoniac (Luke 8:39) and upon encountering Jesus, the woman at the well evangelized the city of Samaria (John 4:29) telling them about her encounter with Jesus. She was a woman with a "history", but the people listened and were converted. 
 
Some churches utilize testimonies online, some are in bulletins or as part of the on-screen presentation, and others are shared randomly as the leader is led.
 
One of the elements of discipleship that is often mishandled is the admonition Jesus gave to: “learn of me” in Matthew 11:29. We are commissioned to go and make disciples, but disciples don’t make themselves. The element of instruction is just as vital as preaching. In fact if don’t take time to “teach” (Matthew 28:20), how can we be sure that the "listeners" ever learn?
 
This is not the time to stop testifying, but definitely time to be sure that we are teaching!  

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"Such a wonderful change in my life has been wrought, since Jesus came into my heart..." -Rufus J. McDaniel