Tonight's Testimony

(Here are the notes for my testimony at tonight's ice cream social. For those of you who won't be able to make it because you're out of town, have a Y chromosome, whatever.)

What is a testimony? Most commonly, it is used when a person is called upon to give an account of what he witnessed. This, however, is a narrow usage.
In a broader application, Webster says that it means "firsthand authentication of a fact," which is what one is called upon to do in a court trial, to verify a fact. A trial lawyer may ask, "Did you know this person before such and such a date?" The witness then authenticates whether or not this fact is true. Testimony also means "evidence." The lawyer asks, "What did you see?" And then the witness presents his evidence.

Here’s what I have seen: I was lost. I was the wretch the song sings about. I was trouble with a capital T. Sex, drugs, and rock and roll were all I knew. They were my idols. I hated God; I was Saul. But here’s what I love about the Bible: God uses some of the most sinful, lost people to do his work. And He uses them to set examples for the rest of us. It’s not sugar-coated. There are no perfect people in the OT, and only one in the New. Nobody who understands what Christianity is really about expects perfection, but for God to use us in our imperfection. I had to hit rock bottom before the Lord would lift me up, meet me in my darkest hour, and bring me through to where I could see the light.

Friends, I have no doubt that though my sins were as crimson, through Christ I am now white as snow. But even in the snow, our thorns can show through.

Romans 7:13 Did that which is good, then, become death to me? By no means! But in order that sin might be recognized as sin, it produced death in me through what was good, so that through the commandment sin might become utterly sinful. 14 We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. 15 I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. 16 And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. 17 As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. 18 I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. 19 For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do–this I keep on doing. 20 Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.
8:1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus,

When we total the monetary value of the elements in our bodies and the value of the average person's skin, we arrive at a net worth of $4.50! Basing the skin's value on the selling price of cowhide, which is approximately $.25 per square foot, the value of an average person's skin is about $3.50.
The U.S. Bureau of Chemistry and Soils invested many a hard-earned tax dollar in calculating the chemical and mineral composition of the human body, which breaks down as follows:

65% Oxygen 18% Carbon
10% Hydrogen 3% Nitrogen
1.5% Calcium 1% Phosphorous
0.35% Potassium 0.25% Sulfur
0.15% Sodium 0.15% Chlorine
0.05% Magnesium 0.0004% Iron
0.00004% Iodine

Additionally, it was discovered that our bodies contain trace quantities of fluorine, silicon, manganese, zinc, copper, aluminum, and arsenic. Together, all of the above amounts to less than one dollar!
So what’s it all for? What is life really worth?

Revelation 12:11 (amplified) And they have overcome (conquered) him by means of the blood of the Lamb and by the utterance of their testimony, for they did not love {and} cling to life even when faced with death [holding their lives cheap till they had to die for their witnessing].

The key word, testimony, is the Greek word marturían, which means either "the act or office of testifying" or "what one testifies." In modern terms, it is either the giving of evidence, as before a judge in a courtroom, or the evidence itself. The word witness is similarly used, as, for instance, the Two Witnesses of Revelation 11 are called mártusín ("witnesses" or "martyrs"), a related word. Their "testimony," then, is evidence they give or a witness they provide.
We should not forget the final phrase, "which they held," as it adds definition and emphasis to their testimony. The evidence they give means something special to them! It is not as if they witnessed an auto accident and, as unbiased bystanders, simply testified about how it happened. Their testimony is something so precious that they hold it fast, bear it, maintain it, keep it in trust, possess it, consider it, believe it, and adhere to it.

We give testimony of our devotion to God and our beliefs in simple, everyday acts, many of which we probably never consider to be witnessing. We make a witness to other members of our families with our every word, act, and decision. We witness of our adherence to law in our public activities, from driving our cars to paying our taxes. Our diligence and thoroughness on the job testify of our godly character or lack thereof. One could go so far as to say that everything we say and do that is witnessed by others shouts out the testimony that we hold. Lord, I pray that not just my words, but my life will be a testimony to your saving grace. Amen.

Summer Reading

Here are the books I've read so far this summer:

1984 by George Orwell

The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Currently reading Beloved by Toni Morrison for a class

Next up, The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy. I'm really looking forward to that one!

Oh, Ellen

I want so much to be an Ellen DeGeneres fan. She's funny, witty and smart. Her stand up routines always made me laugh out loud. I watched her sitcom faithfully.

Until...

Everything started to be about being gay. Ok, I get that the "coming out" episode was a big deal for people who choose that lifestyle. It pushed the GLBT agenda to new levels in Hollywood. I don't like the agenda or what it stands for, but I get it. If only that was the end of it. Sadly, after that episode there were no more funny sitcom moments on the show for straight people. So I gave up watching it.

Then, Ellen got a talk show. Great! She's funny again. She's got that cool little dance thing, and lots of fun guests.

Until...

California decided to allow same-sex couples to have legal "marriages" yesterday. Again, I don't agree with it, but I get where people are coming from. But, the first thing Ellen does is goes on the show and announces she will "marry" her girlfriend, just because she can. Her show has become a platform for that tired old agenda again, and I will no longer watch.

This is the major point I have against same-sex marriages at this point. [Obvious Scriptural reasons aside] I see this sect using marriage for political standing, rather than the loving, personal commitment it is meant to be. It's almost fitting that this is done in California, since same-sex relationships rarely last longer than a Hollywood marriage anyway. The difference now is that there will be a costly divorce involved, increasing the divorce rate exponentially. It's sad that GLBT activists care less about the meaning of marriage and more about activism itself.

Here's my parting thought, if anybody is reading who may be affected by the new law in California: as with anything else, just because you can do something, doesn't mean you should.

Digging to the roots

I've been thinking about thinking. It's a powerful thought. Thoughts are powerful things.

The positive or negative thoughts in our little minds have such a tremendous impact on our lives. The smallest negative thought can fester and grow into an enormous burden. Likewise, the miniscule positive thought can grow into achievements beyond anything we thought possible. Matthew 17:20 tells us "I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you."

I was doing some gardening today and decided to get rid of a plant in the yard that has been bothering me for months. It was mostly dead on the top and inside, but starting to get new growth on the bottom. It's a thorny bush that looks rather hideous with the dead branches sticking out from everywhere. I've been putting off the removal of this plant for several reasons. First, I thought Scott was going to get to it. He would have. Eventually. Things are very busy around here right now with finals coming up. But I digress.

The second, third, fourth...nineteenth...reasons all had to do with me. I thought I didn't have enough energy. That was the main thing. I haven't had my thyroid medicine, I didn't get enough rest, I'm out of shape. In other words, I had excuses. I had excuses for my excuses. I had negative thoughts.

I finished all my other gardening and resolved to tackle the bush that looked like Side Show Bob in drag. The plant was only a couple of feet high and wide. How hard could it be? Ha!

I started digging. And digging. And digging. I found that the more I dug, the deeper the roots went. How could this tiny bush have such big roots in such abundance? It was insane. As I continued to dig, I was continuously scraped and scratched by the prolific thorns and dead twigs protruding from this demon plant. It seemed like the roots would never end.

That's what got me thinking about thoughts. Mostly about excuses, actually. They are the bush that seems attractive with all the pink flowers, but they have thorns underneath that bite and gnaw continuously. And of course, they have roots. As I found with the plant, much to my chagrin, sometimes even the roots have roots! What happens if you don't get all the roots? The tree grows back, as thorny and ugly as ever.

I won't go into all the root digging I did concerning the thoughts I described above. Suffice it to say, I had plenty of time to think while digging. The reason I hadn't tackled the plant before is because sometimes I'm just plain lazy. That's the reason I don't do a lot of things I should do. I'll have to tackle that one soon enough. I found, too, that I have very little follow through. I'll start something and not finish. The excuse is "I have no will power" or "I needed a rest" or "I have this medical issue". The root of the root is laziness. That's why I haven't finished my novel. That's why I haven't lost the weight. That's why, well, you get the picture.

And it's almost why I gave up on the plant. The sun was getting hot, my shoulder getting sore, and I was dying of thirst. I was so close, and ready to give up on the plant, but also on my ability to remove it. Then I remembered the mustard seed. Luke 17:6 tells the same story (ah, the marvelous cohesion of the Bible) with a little different twist: " He replied, "If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, 'Be uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it will obey you." All I can say is, it applies to bouganvillas as well. The deed is done. I'm sore and sweaty, but better off for it. Not only is the tree on its way to the dump, but I uncovered some roots of my own.

Another song

When Your name is exalted
Over all the earth
My job will be done
When Your will is done

When the people all praise You
Every nation, tribe and tongue
Your glory will surround us
And then the end will come

And I will have no fear
And I will have no fear

Your promises endure
Your promises endure

I want to sing
Your praises with the nations
I want to bring
Your message to the world
I want to live
A life that glorifies you
I want to give
Everything to You