Boldness

 by Renee Scott

There are times when God speaks and you must have the boldness to be vulnerable and obedient to His calling.  During last Monday’s Beautiful meeting, I had to answer God’s call with boldness.  As I prepared to teach a lesson on faith, I wanted to avoid sharing my testimony but I knew it was God’s desire.  I’m a pretty private person, so the thought of sharing some of the details of my life was hard. 

I don’t normally get nervous when speaking but that was not the case on Monday night.  Even with church beginning at 7pm, I was still struggling at 6:45pm.  Not because I wasn’t prepared, but because I didn’t want to share my testimony.  In the back of my mind, I knew that the Bible was clear about the power of our testimony….

And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death. Revelation 12:11 (KJV)

Despite my hesitations, I boldly proclaimed where I’ve been and the journey I’m still taking.  Boy oh boy, am I a work in progress.  Last semester I stepped down from the teaching team for much needed counseling and I will do the same this semester.  Sometimes when we see others on “stage” we think they have it all together.  One thing I’ve learned is that we all have issues and concerns that will keep us needing a Savior to guide and lead us at all times. 

Since sharing my testimony, several women have encouraged me.  They identified with the pain of my past and celebrated my new path of healing.  I NEEDED to hear those women.  It was confirmation that God’s will was fulfilled.  That night when I returned home, instead of feeling lighter, I felt heavier.  Satan continued to try and battle me within my mind. 

You shared too much.  Your words will only cause judgment, not help others move toward healing.  Those were just some of the thoughts that Satan tried to taunt me with.  For a few brief moments I internalized his words and started to actually regret sharing my testimony.  This was not how I wanted to feel after being obedient to God’s will.

I quickly remembered Philippians 4:8 (NLT)….

And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.

Here’s my word to each of the readers.  You can NEVER go wrong when you follow God’s leading.  We are all the sum total of our experiences.  Whether good or bad, God has purpose in our pain and in our victories.  We are able to overcome by the word of our testimonies.  I will continue to be BOLD for Christ. 

Share with us about some of your recent bold moves for Christ.

Renee Scott is co-founder of the popular blog,  www.doubleportioninspiration.blogspot.com ,where she shares encouragement and inspiration to men and women all over the world.  She’s been a member of Grace Family Church for four years. She loves to run and recently completed her first half marathon. She is a wife of over 14 years and mother of two children.