“Modern man listens more willingly to a witness than to
a teacher, and if he does listen to teachers, it is because they are witnesses.”
Everyone likes a story with a happy ending. Everyone wants to see George Bailey find that
$8,000 and Clarence to get his wings. No
one is disappointed when Scrooge comes to the Cratchits’ on Christmas morning
with his arms piled high with presents and his heart filled with Christmas
spirit. And who has not shed a tear when
the Baby Jesus brings the Little Drummer boy’s lamb back to life? Every
conversion story has a happy ending because it ends with the person coming
closer to Jesus, the source of all joy and happiness.
Whether you are a convert, a revert (one who has returned
to the faith), or a lifelong Catholic, you must find your own personal way of
sharing your own faith testimony. In
Terry Barber’s How to Share Your Faith
with Anyone, he suggests five effective testimony types to help you
evangelize.
1. My personal walk with the Lord
2. The reasons I love being Catholic
3. The Catholic Church as the Church
founded by Jesus Christ
4. My conversion
5. God’s call and my vocation
Whichever you choose, keep it simple and centered on
one event. “Whether your conversion was from another religion or denomination
or from a worldly life to a Christ-centered one, it is the transformation . . .
that will appeal to people.”
“Arrange your testimony into three parts:
1. Before You committed your Life to the
Lord
Your testimony will begin with some personal
history: your family background and
upbringing, your vocation in life, your interests, and so forth. Then you will share more specifically about
your “past life”, that is, the way things were before you committed yourself to
Jesus Christ and his Church.” Be honest
about the sinful areas of your past life but be prudent and don’t glamorize it.
2. God’s “Divine Invasion” and Your
Conversion.
How did Christ come into your life in a personal
way? Be specific. It is your story, but remember the main character
is our Savior. Concentrate on Him. “The main point of your entire witness is the
way you have become a “new creation” (2 Corinthians 5:17) in Jesus Christ
especially through His grace communicated through the Sacraments and the
transformation that has come about in your life (Acts 26:12-19).
3. Your New Life in Jesus Christ
Express clearly the differences in your life now that
you have “the mind of Christ” (1 Corinthians 2: 16). Make it compelling enough to make the person
you are evangelizing want what you have:
a relationship with Jesus Christ that resulted when you entered the
Church or returned to the practice of the Faith. Be honest and provide specific, concrete examples
and true stories. Examples include “…
your new outlook on life; your ability to forgive; your new freedom, which may
include freedom from addiction or bad habits but is most especially liberation
from the enslavement of sin and bandage of the devil”
Write out your story.
Practice it out loud. Remember,
your personal testimony has the power to bring someone to eternal life.
What Does the Bible Say?
“Proclaim
the message; be persistent whether the time is favorable or unfavorable;
convince, rebuke, and encourage, with the utmost patience in teaching.”
— 2 Timothy 4:2
“You
did not choose me but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit,
fruit that will last, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask him in
my name.”
— John 15:16
What Do the Saints Say?
“Modern man listens more
willingly to a witness than to a teacher, and if he does listen to teachers, it
is because they are witnesses.”
— Pope Venerable Paul VI
This Week’s Evangelizing Challenge
Missio
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