My wife’s used to not having her story taken seriously. For years, whenever she or both of us have told the story of how we came to faith, we’ve seen people stop speaking to us, back away slowly as if we were whacked, or (in one instance) convert to an entirely different religion.
But that’s what happens when demons are involved.
I say all this because Emily’s never been an attention seeker, or a glory hound. She’s been quite content to hang out here at the house, raise our kids, and live a quiet life. This year, though, God had something else in mind.
It started with a compulsion to write down her story, with the idea of sharing it with our church. About a week later, Christianity Today asked her to share it in the magazine (which you can read here). After it was published, things got a bit interesting. Members of our congregation have approached one or both of us expressing their appreciation for what God has done in her life. A few people have done the same on social media. Then she was asked to be a guest on a radio show, where the host approached the story from a skeptic’s point of view.[1. whether he was actually skeptical or it’s a schtick, I don’t know.]
Around the same time, a couple of major Christian outlets got in touch wanting to share the story on TV, but she was extremely hesitant about doing these—largely because she was concerned about the story being focused on spiritual attack and not on Christ. But eventually, she decided to go for it, and yesterday, her interview with Cheryl Weber aired on 100 Huntley St. Check it out:
When all this happened, I was thrilled for her. Not because she was going to be in the spotlight, but because she had an opportunity to share the good news of Christ in a highly unusual way. She has a story that matters in that it is a story about how Christ is at work saving lost people right now. People like the family members at least some of us will be spending time with over the holidays. Like our neighbors, our friends and coworkers. You have a story like that, too. The details will be different. It may be more unusual than ours, or it may be considerably more “normal” (if such a thing can really be said of these things). Regardless of the specifics, your story is a gift from God—one worth sharing, even if people don’t take it seriously. So share it. Invite questions. Embrace the awkwardness. And as you share your story, share the bigger story—the story of Christ’s coming to this world that he made to seek and save the lost. People like you and me.
And if people don’t take us seriously, that’s still good news worth sharing.
