Testimony with a Word of Encouragement

Nepali Youth Group 10-6-23

My Testimony:

Key points to Hit:

My testimony is likely different from many of yours. And your own testimony will differ from that of the person sitting next to you.

No 2 people have the same exact testimony. Isn’t that incredible!

God gives each of us a story that we need to use. People can try to deny the bible (and be wrong), but there isn’t an ability to argue what they are seeing right before them…that is YOU!!!

So I have thrown around this word Testimony a lot...

What is a testimony? Whats the purpose of one?

What is more important? What you were like before or what you have become since you met Jesus?

It is what you have become!

Grew up in Christian home

Saved at the age of 9

Went on my first mission trip in 2012 - This made my faith my own!!!

Got more involved in the ministry of NLF. Was with many of you since you were in preschool until your first or second year in high school

Went back to El-Salvador and even Mexico on more mission trips! God gave me a love for telling other nations about Jesus!

Went to Word of Life in Florida - the most growing year of my life in my relationship with God

Moved up to Buchanan - big change - not very easy - didn’t know too many people

Started serving at Community Church in Buchanan with the youth group

This was a big step for me. I had to move to something new and not familiar. Serving people who don’t know and don’t care about God

Learned patience in many areas - ministry, meeting a godly woman, job, etc. (please wait on God, it is always better in His design and timing. Learn to love His presence more than anything else, because anything else can eventually let you down)

Starting a business

Here I am, wanting to use where God has led me to serve and honor Him

Finally, before I finish, I want to share a passage with you from Ecclesiastes 11:9-12:7

9 Rejoice, O young man, in your youth, and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth. Walk in the ways of your heart and the sight of your eyes. But know that for all these things God will bring you into judgment.

10 Remove vexation from your heart, and put away pain from your body, for youth and the dawn of life are vanity.

1 Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come and the years draw near of which you will say, “I have no pleasure in them”;

2 before the sun and the light and the moon and the stars are darkened and the clouds return after the rain,

3 in the day when the keepers of the house tremble, and the strong men are bent, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those who look through the windows are dimmed,

4 and the doors on the street are shut—when the sound of the grinding is low, and one rises up at the sound of a bird, and all the daughters of song are brought low—

5 they are afraid also of what is high, and terrors are in the way; the almond tree blossoms, the grasshopper drags itself along, and desire fails, because man is going to his eternal home, and the mourners go about the streets—

6 before the silver cord is snapped, or the golden bowl is broken, or the pitcher is shattered at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern,

7 and the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the spirit returns to God who gave it.

.....

13 The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.

14 For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil.

Let me share a few details about what is being said here:

Solomon at the end of his life.

Sharing that all is meaningless apart from God

Here he gets to the end of the book and is talking to young people!

He tells you not to waste away your youth. You can get busy, you can get distracted, you can be miserable and wish away your days.

But he goes into descriptive detail to tell us that our body will age and eventually go back to the dust as we were originally made.

So pursue the things you love. Be passionate in life. But remember His warning…God brings all things into judgement. So live life to the fullest, but keep eternity in mind! Doing so will allow you to enjoy the things of your youth in the proper way that God has designed for you.

So finally, here my thought of sharing all of this!

God desires young people to pursue Him shamelessly!

God wants to use young people and He has through out history!

Will you serve God and experience utter Joy in doing so?