Many years ago, I had the opportunity to work as a summer camp counselor at Lake Whitney Ranch. Every week, we would have campers and staff share testimonies that varied from battles with drug addiction, abuse, pregnancy, poverty, and other incredible topics that were life-changing. After hearing these beautiful testimonies of my fellow peers turning towards God during the darkest moments in their lives, I couldn’t help but feel neutral, bland, and ordinary. I never struggled with drugs or tried to take my own life. I didn’t have to find my next meal or question my sexuality. This ate at me the moment I was asked to give a testimony the next week.
What on earth could I even testify about? OH! Maybe the time I wanted to go to France to study abroad but my sister was sent instead. Yeah, that would resonate with the audience really well. Or maybe the time both my parents showered me with love and spent more money on my 15th birthday than at their own wedding. Or maybe share with the campers how I’ve been to over 12 countries before I graduated high school. I felt I was not worthy enough to share a testimony. I believed that testimonies were shared when you have overcome a challenge or dark time and see God’s love and mercy at the end of it. I felt embarrassed and ashamed of living a privileged life. I was always provided for in all aspects of my life; financially, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Troubled and at a loss of what I could share with my campers, I sat down and took the time to think.
God’s timing couldn’t have been better. He sent my good friend to sit next to me as I thought. The words that came out of his mouth have remained in my heart to this day. He told me that my life is my testimony. There are campers and staff in that audience that have never experienced or even thought possible that there could be people in this world that are loved and cared for in all manners. By sharing the home I live in, it could give them hope to strive to create a life and home where everyone is loved and cared for.
That night, I prayed hard for God to speak through me as I shared my life. I never forget that night. My heart poured through my words onto that stage and God answered my prayer. I had a camper come up to me afterward with tears in her eyes saying, “Your testimony spoke to me.” She then opened her heart to me and shared all her struggles and hope for a better life. I praised God.
So what if you didn’t survive a flaming airplane crash or a large volcanic eruption. Maybe you feel your life isn’t “good enough” to share. Well, I’m sharing with you today, over a decade later, that every one of you has a story to tell. Everyone has a testimony to share. Be the example. Be honest and open with everyone you meet and I assure you, there is at least one person out there waiting for God to use your life’s testimony to speak to them.
Alejandra Clark is a CTE Food Science Educator at Edinburg High School.
Photo by Element5 Digital on Unsplash
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