Embracing Your Story

Guiding Scripture: Romans 10:15 - “And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!’”

• When many people think about sharing their stories with others, they feel overwhelmed and intimidated. They worry about what they will say and whether or not they’ll be rejected for it. Some even wonder if they have a story worth telling. I’m here to tell you that your story is more valuable than you know. Today, we’re going to talk about how to embrace your story and move forward in telling it with confidence. 
• Recognize that God is sending you.
  1. John 20:21 - “Again Jesus said, ‘Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.’”
  2. When you know that God Himself, the creator of the universe, is sending you as His ambassador for His kingdom, it empowers you because you realize that you are representing Him, not yourself.
• Value your uniqueness.
  1. Psalm 139:14 - “I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.”
  2. There has never been a person in the entire world who looks, thinks, sounds, acts, or feels like you do. You had a 1 in 400 trillion chance of being born. No one else can share your story in exactly the way you can. 
• Be authentic.
  1. Be careful about filtering your story based on what other people might think. Sometimes the parts of your story that you feel ashamed of are the parts that can bring freedom to others.
  2. At the same time, use wisdom about what you share and with whom you share it. There’s a fine line between being transparent and oversharing.
• Understand that the need is great.
  1. Matthew 9:37-38 - “Then he said to his disciples, ‘The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.’”
• Be confident that the Holy Spirit will help you tell your story.
  1. Luke 12:12 - “for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you should say.”
  2. Matthew 10:20 - “for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.”
  3. 1 Corinthians 3:7-9 - “So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor. For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building.”
  4. Many of us put pressure on ourselves to tell our stories “perfectly,” but Scripture allows us to completely take the pressure off of ourselves. It is the Holy Spirit who brings people to the Cross; our job is only to show them the way.

Action Step: Ask yourself honestly if you are embracing your testimony and looking for ways to share it with others. If so, how can you apply the principles in today’s episode to be even more effective? If you’re not sharing it, what can you do differently to get more comfortable with doing so? Ask the Holy Spirit for boldness to help you with this process.