My Story

We are commanded to share our story
……always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you. 1 Peter 3:15

Our personal story has power.

And they overcame Him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death. Revelation 12:11

No one can refute your story.

He answered and said, “Whether He is a sinner or not I do not know. One thing I know: that though I was blind, now I see.” John 9:25

Important Note: It is critical to share your testimony at some point before you ask someone if they would like to accept Christ as their savior. They need to know how God has impacted your life.


A man found an abandoned dog in a field. The dog had lost half of his hair, was skinny and trembling in fear. The man took the dog in, fed the dog and loved it back to health. He and his family were enjoying the dog as their own. Then one day the dog ran away. The man was heartbroken. After all he had done for the dog, he could not understand why he would run away. Then one day he heard a scratching at the door of the house. He opened it only to see that the dog had come back and with him was another dog, skinny, shaking in fear. This dog looked just like the dog he had originally found.

I am that dog. God found me in bad shape and gave me the life that I have today. I would be honored to share my story with you in hopes that you would allow Him to love you like He is loving me.



I WAS...
_______________________________________
This is a description of your life before Christ

THEN JESUS...
_____________________________________
This is a description of your conversion experience

SINCE THEN...
_____________________________________
This is a description of your life after your conversion

I WAS...

My name is ______________ and I grew up in _________________.
Before I accepted Christ, I WAS skeptical about God and my faith, on a scale of 1-10, was a ____________. Even though I was made in the image of God to live in relationship with Him, I WAS rebellious, prideful and pushed God away, not trusting God, and I would ________________ or ______________________

I believed I would be happy if I _______________________________ and
______________ and ___________________ but living like this ruined ______________ in my life and ruined the opportunity to fulfill my God given eternal purpose. I found myself in bondage to ________________ unable to find peace.

My heart was empty and I WAS tired of feeling ______________________

Romans 6:23 says “For the wages of sin is death.”

The penalty of ‘my’ sin was taking a toll on me.

I finally decided that I WAS not happy with __________________ as part of my life and I wanted God’s love and forgiveness to erase _________________ from my life.

Because God’s standard was perfection and I was an unforgiven sinner, I could be never be good enough to reach God in my own strength.

THEN, JESUS...

Then Jesus came into my life when I learned that, despite my rebellious attitude toward God, Jesus loved me and died on the cross to pay the ransom for my sin.

At the time I was __________________________ when I heard and learned ___________ ________________________.

John 3:16 says For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. I now realized that “God so loved me.”

I was shocked to hear that, after all that I had done, Jesus died and rose from the dead for my sin.

I decided to repent and surrender my life to Jesus as my Savior, so I prayed and asked Him to forgive me and fill me with the Holy Spirit.

Then Jesus opened my eyes and I realized that my life had changed. Afterwards, I didn’t view ___________ and __________ as my ultimate source of my happiness. I knew that the only way to receive complete joy and contentment is by repenting trusting in God.

SINCE THEN...

Since then, my life has not been the same.

Instead of trusting in _____________ and _____________ as a source of happiness, I now focus my time and energy on ________________ and ___________________________.

Now, my main goal is to please God and not myself.

Though I’m not perfect, I’m learning to trust God and rely on His powerful love more and more each day.

This verse best describes my new life. It says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” 2 Corinthians 5:17

My Story Recap

1- Remember, Jesus is loving you back into the relationship that you were created to enjoy.

Therefore, share your story with humility and appreciation for what God is doing in your life.

2- Make sure you include each of the 3 components of your story:

“I Was” - Your gospel context or life before Christ.

“Then Jesus” - Your gospel text or the moment you gave your life to Christ.

“Since Then” - Your gospel next. Describe what your life has been like since you decided to repent.
Activity With your gospel partner, practice reading and sharing your testimony and include:

I WAS

THEN JESUS

SINCE THEN

Fire Drill

If Jesus was attacked, criticized and put in the fire, so you will you.

Matthew 10:24-25 A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. It is enough for a disciple that he be like his teacher, and a servant like his master. If they have called the master of the house.

Matthew 5:11 Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

The Question is, what do you do?

Stay Calm, Curious and Courageous


1- When asked a question you cannot answer
Response: “That’s a great question, can I do some research and get back to you?”

2- When attacked as a hypocrite because you’ve been a bad witness in the eyes of your Just 1 or a bible thumper
Response: Ask for feedback on how you can do better. Apologize for your shortcomings.
Thank them for being honest, ask for forgiveness and pray for them that they would not hold your behavior against Jesus.

3- When criticized for being like all other Christian hypocrites
Response: Refer to Bad singers and Bad actors - Whitney Houston or Bad actors
Don’t confuse the bad behavior of others with the loving self sacrificial death of Jesus.
Don’t blame bad acting in a movie on the script writer.
Don’t blame bad Grammy award singers for bad imitators.
Don’t blame a perfect savior named Jesus for the bad acting Christians.