I was sitting in a room full of teachers listening to members of my team give their testimony. Story after story of life without Christ to life with Christ was shared with a genuine and authentic voice. What really caught my attention was a teacher from Guatemala (a very life-giving and outgoing young man from a what we call "impoverished" country) spoke about the demonic forces that he faced on a daily basis. He was in a rough crowd, depression had a hold on him, and the horrors that he faced growing up were unreal to me. He fed into these forces and was trapped in sin believing lies about himself. He then spoke about how the Word of the Lord transformed his life to the point of tears. The word of God was made known to him and although sin would still be present, He was free of sin's hold on his life. He had hope and could rely on the only one able to save and sustain him.
All of our stories were similar, no matter the magnitude of the valleys that we faced. While some valleys were very outwardly known, my valleys consisted more of internal pride, selfishness, and battle of security. No matter what the valleys were, we were separated from God until He was revealed to us. We all still struggle with sin, but there is hope and a genuine want to pursue what is right and avoid sin. As I listened to these testimonies, I thought back to my story and realized that the same God that saved these teachers from their pit, saved me! The same God that is at work in my heart is at work in Guatemala and around the globe. My story is special because it is not a story about me. Rather, "my story" points to the God of creation, the God of the universe, who is powerful beyond measure and wants to know us personally. It just took traveling to another country for me to realize how impactful each testimony is.
"There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call— one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all." Ephesians 4:4-6
