My 3-Minute Testimony

The wife and I are in the finals stages of becoming official members of our local church. As part of that process, we have been asked by the leadership to present a 1-3 minute testimony before the congregation.

Public speaking has never been a pleasure for either of us, but thankfully, we were instructed it was best to write down our testimonies and simply read from it during the service.

I have shared what I wrote below, but wanted to encourage all of you to consider writing out your own brief testimony as well. While I may look back now and wish I had written some of this more profoundly, included actual Scripture, or expanded on some of the topics, the exercise of trying to condense such a life-altering event into a few brief paragraphs was quite a blessing regardless.

This is also a great way to remind yourself of who you were (dead in your sins), who you became (a new creation in Christ), who you are still becoming (sanctified by the Holy Spirit), and who you will one day be (glorified with Christ)!

How would you present your own salvation story if given only a couple of minutes?

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I was blessed to be raised within a culturally Christian home. We attended church somewhat regularly, read Bible stories as kids, and prayed before meals.

I was told I was “saved” at least three times as I responded to various altar calls, having been emotionally manipulated into “accepting” Christ into my heart, though He never seemed to stick around.

Throughout my teenage and young adult years, I believed myself to be a Christian; after all, I had written down in my Bible the date I prayed the so-called “Sinner’s Prayer.” However, I was a raging hypocrite, wholly incapable of living up to even my own warped moral compass. I was a fornicator, liar, thief, blasphemer, pornographer, drunkard…

It wasn’t until I was in my late twenties that I began to realize that my sense of morality was based more upon a desire to not get caught, not disappoint my family, and not suffer from a guilty conscience. My morality had nothing to do with God’s holy standards, and the guilt I would feel over my sinful lifestyle was not a godly sorrow, but a worldly sorrow.

Looking back now, I cannot tell you the exact time or day that I was saved; nor can I pinpoint a specific event where I recognized I had passed from death unto life by the grace of God. But I can tell you that my life began to change in my late 20’s or early 30’s.

I began to see myself differently: I was not a “good person who sometimes makes mistakes,” but a lost sinner in desperate need of a Savior!

I began to see my sins differently: they were no longer simple mistakes or missteps, but treasonous rebellion against a holy and righteous Creator.

I began to see Jesus differently: He was no longer a mere accessory in my life, He has become precious to me.

I am eternally grateful to my Lord and Savior that I was never a goat, but have always been His sheep, precious enough to Him to seek me out, even while I was yet a sinner.

Now, I can say with full confidence that I have been redeemed by the blood of Christ. I am being sanctified by the Holy Spirit, growing in my hatred of sin and love for righteousness day by day. And I look forward to that glorious day when I will meet my Savior face-to-face and be glorified in Him.