Creating A Winsome Personal Testimony

Creating A Winsome Personal Testimony
John R. Petrilli

In my 35-plus years as a Christian, I’ve discovered that there are certain words in our Christian lingo that can bring discomfort. One such word is the term “witnessing”. That word has the power to conjure up visions of rejection, Bible-banging, and a host of other unpleasant things. Yet, when we look at the New Testament, we see that the earliest believers were really stoked when it came to sharing their faith.

I’m afraid that sharing our faith has been given a really bad rap. That’s due in large part to a number of misconceptions about what witnessing actually involves. Contrary to one popular misconception, witnessing does not imply that we’re on some kind of evangelical crusade to force people into receiving Christ as Savior. When we look at the witness of the apostle Paul, we see him frequently using his own personal testimony as the means of sharing the gospel message in a natural, convincing way.

Technically speaking, the word “witness” actually implies that we simply tell others what we have personally come to know. Now that doesn’t sound all that difficult a thing to do. And it really isn’t. But to share your testimony effectively will require some preparation. Believers need to be actively engaged in telling others what God’s done in their life. In Acts 22:1-21 we discover five ways to create a winsome personal testimony.

ESTABLISH AUDIENCE RAPPORT BY IDENTIFYING WITH THEM. Acts 22:1-3a

It’s always courteous to secure permission to share your story. It shows respect for the privacy and preferences of the person you’re conversing with. No one likes to be imposed upon, and if God has prepared someone’s heart, they’ll be open to hearing what you have to say. Note how Paul spoke to his audience in their own dialect. It really helps to speak to others in their own language, and that includes avoiding terms they’re unfamiliar with. Use language they can understand. In verse 3 we also see Paul including in his introductory remarks that he was a Jew just like them. Interpersonal rapport is greatly enhanced by connecting with your audience at a point of common ground.

BUILD INTEREST BY RELATING SOMETHING ABOUT YOUR LIFE BEFORE YOU BECAME A CHRISTIAN. Acts 22:3b-5

A winsome testimony is characterized by transparency and honesty. Most people can spot a religious phony a mile away. They have no time or patience for a plastic presentation, and rightfully so. People need to sense that you are genuine, and willing to open up to them.
It is best to provide some details about your journey. In v. 3 Paul tells about his outstanding education and religious zeal, two things that would have grabbed the ear of his Jewish audience. He also includes personal accomplishments in his Judaic religion, so it’s not
inappropriate to include an accomplishment or two if done tastefully and humbly. What I found extremely interesting is the way Paul also shared his failures (4). While we tend to think that such a disclosure may discredit our testimony, to the contrary it can lend real credibility to it as people see that we’re human just like they are.

GRADUALLY MOVE INTO THE CIRCUMSTANCES THAT SURROUNDED YOUR CONVERSION EXPERIENCE. Acts 22:6-10

Paul was able to recount the exact time and location of his conversion. He included details about the atmosphere and setting of the occasion. The apostle explained how Christ spoke to him personally. He even quoted the exact words Jesus said to him. Then he related his response to Jesus’ words. What we glean from this part of Paul’s testimony is that we should include in our testimony the manner in which we heard God’s voice. Perhaps God spoke through the voice of your conscience, or through a verse of Scripture. Our testimony will be greatly empowered and used by the Holy Spirit when we cite the Bible verses or other means that God used to get through to us.

NARROW THE FOCUS TO THE POINT WHERE YOU DECIDED TO TRUST CHRIST FOR SALVATION. Acts 22:10b-16

It helps to share any role that other believers played in your decision. Paul didn’t hesitate to mention how God led a believer named Ananias into his pathway at just the right time.
Paul related how Ananias befriended him and ministered to him by restoring his sight. He shared how Ananias witnessed to him and encouraged him in his decision. We should also explain how it was that we came to a point of decision (16). Paul told his audience how God had struck him down with a light beam from heaven, and how he had called on the Lord to forgive his sins inside of Ananias’ house. We can enthusiastically share the joy of forgiveness we experienced. The apostle told his audience how Christ had washed away his sins, and surely added that he was filled with the joy of the Holy Spirit. We can opt to include what steps we took to go public with our decision (16). Having communicated the details of his actual conversion experience, Paul told how he went public with his faith by being baptized.
He may well have mentioned that he did this in obedience to Jesus’ command to be
baptized.

ALWAYS CLOSE YOUR TESTIMONY ON A POSITIVE NOTE BY DESCRIBING THE CHANGES CHRIST HAS MADE IN YOUR LIFE. Acts 22: 17-21

We can take this opportunity to share some of the radical changes the Lord has made in our life. Paul went from a persecuting madman to the greatest spokesperson the Church has ever seen! Whatever the changes Jesus has made in your life, be them quiet or dramatic, you can share those changes with others. We can enthusiastically tell the ways in which God is providing direction and purpose for our life (18). And we can freely share the excitement of seeing the Lord unfold His personal plan for our life. In this regard, Paul told how God had revealed to him His plan for him to be involved in ministry primarilyto the non-Jewish segment of the world.

The goal is for each of us to develop a new confidence in sharing our faith by way of a personal testimony. I would like to encourage you to sit down, think through, and write down some
of the key points you’d like to include in your personal testimony. If you’ve already done this, the only question remaining is, are you using it?