A journey of thanksgiving

When I was younger, I often lamented about how boring and mundane my Christian testimony was. I wanted an incredible tale to share with people. I wanted them to hear my story and taste the power of God!

Much to my chagrin, my testimony contained no dramatic rescue from drug addiction; no vivid dreams of Jesus defeating demons; no audible words of calling from the Holy Spirit. My imagination longed to create a miraculous scenario of divine intervention.

My testimony, however, like that of many, simply spoke of a “long obedience in the same direction,” to quote Eugene Peterson.

Over the years, I’ve realized that my testimony points to God’s gracious blessing in my life. And that’s OK. There’s no room for guilt or embarrassment over God’s work. I’ve learned that, in order to honour God – to proclaim his deeds and spread his “fame” in my circles of influence – I have to be completely comfortable with my story.

I’ve realized that my testimony is one of thankfulness. I’m thankful I was born in a country free from war when, a generation earlier, my father was forced to flee his homeland during a bloody revolution. I’m thankful for the nutritious and delicious food I enjoy each day when, just down the street, a soup kitchen feeds hungry families. I’m thankful for the healthcare I receive when, in other parts of the world, millions of people die from preventable diseases such as malaria or AIDS.

So, I’ve stopped lamenting over my testimony. (And I’ve stopped trying to recount how seagoing missionaries once saved me from a marauding band of pirates!) I’m at peace with my unique story and realize it communicates something very important about God’s character.

I also hope my early conversion story will be the least amazing part of my journey. I look forward to watching God continue his work in my life. I hope the day of my baptism will pale in comparison to what I discover about God this week. I long for my relationship with the Lord to grow stronger, deeper, wider as the years pass by. As Katie Funk Wiebe so accurately notes in this issue of the Herald, “Faith is a journey, not just a beginning.”

We encounter God again and again in our lives. Some encounters are fairly mundane, while others are quite extraordinary. As these moments become part of our testimonies, our stories grow richer and more exciting all the time.

I’m truly thankful for God’s work in my life over the past years. And I look forward to learning more about him as my journey winds on.