Our testimonies are powerful because they speak to the work that God has done within us. They are an important part of helping others understand what God has been doing. You can get started developing your own testimony using the video and its transcript below.
Welcome back to the Disciple-Making Training Sessions. In this session, we will learn a tool called the 15-Second Testimony to help us know what to say when we want to share what God has done in our lives with someone on your Generation Map. Your testimony is a powerful tool because it is your story with Jesus. Someone may be able to say that they don’t have faith or don’t believe, but no one can refute your story…because it is your story!
There are three parts to telling your 15-Second Testimony, plus a question at the end.
The first part is the Introduction which describes your life before Jesus.
The second part is how you came to Jesus, the circumstances under which you learned what he has done for you.
And the third part is your life in Jesus and how you have changed.
At the end, we also want to ask a question to help the person you are speaking with to think and give them an opportunity to respond to your story.
So, for the introduction, you can start with, “There was a time in my life…” and then fill in a couple of points that describe your life before coming to Jesus. Pick two words that describe your life before coming to Jesus and write them in the blanks.
Now, we want to talk about how we responded to God’s grace. In two points, describe the circumstances of how you came to Jesus and write them in the blanks here.
Third, think of two words that describe your life now that you are following Jesus and write those there.
Finally, you can ask them a simple question at the end. You can say, “Do you have a story like that?”
Go back and tell your story, putting it all together with the words that you filled in the blanks. Read your story out loud to yourself, and then grab a partner and tell them your story. Make sure to include all three parts, and don’t forget to include the question at the end to give them an opportunity to respond.
If we use this 15-Second Testimony as an example, we would say, “There was a time in my life that I lied to people, and even stole from them. But a friend of mine told me about Jesus and I understood God’s forgiveness in my life. Since making a decision to follow Jesus, I have had confidence and a purpose in my life because now I walk with God. Do you have a story like that?
It is important to take some time to practice your 15-Second Testimony with a partner. Be sure that you can explain it clearly to another person. Explain it to each other two or three times so that you feel comfortable in explaining it to each other. Now, you will be ready to begin looking at your Generation Map and sharing your Testimony with the people there. God bless you as you get started making disciples by sharing God’s grace on your life using your 15-Second Testimony.