Take Courage, Testify

“The following night the Lord stood near Paul and said, ‘Take courage! As you have testified about me in Jerusalem, so you must also testify in Rome.’”           Acts 23:11

Paul had endured great suffering and was about to endure much more at the hands of his own people. The Pharisees and Sanhedrin were conspiring to kill him, and he would never fulfill his plan to testify in Rome. But the word of the Lord came to Paul, “Take Courage, you will testify in Rome!”

Here’s what the Lord didn’t say: He didn’t say, “I know you are weary, give it up and go home”. He didn’t say, “I know you are suffering, I know you miss your family, I know the Pharisees want to kill you, I know many of your friends and loved ones have died, I know it seems impossible, I know you’ll be crucified in Rome; therefore, stop testifying about me and go home.” He said, “ Take COURAGE, don’t quit, stay the mission, TESTIFY!”

Today, despite our circumstance, be it weariness, illness, loss of a loved one, or whatever it may be, “Take COURAGE and TESTIFY”. For the most part, as Christians, we spend over 95% of our time supporting other believers. Don’t get me wrong, supporting Christians is a good thing, but are we intentionally positioning ourselves to reach those who don’t know Christ? Are we boldly reaching out to people we don’t know, people of differing cultures, young and old alike? So many people have not yet heard the Gospel and are dying daily in their hopelessness, lost for eternity. The Lord is saying to each of us, “Take COURAGE, I’m not finished with you yet. My plans will prevail. TESTIFY about me. Testify about my great love. Be bold, affirm my gospel to everyone you meet. Take COURAGE and TESTIFY!”