Would anyone like to share a testimony?”

I remember sitting in a pew as a little girl on a Sunday night. I was visiting my grandma’s church. There were a few believers gathered, and, one by one, different individuals shared stories of what God had done recently or in the past. The pastor also took requests for songs.

Looking back, the word “testimony” seems frozen in time to that era. It’s no longer part of our church culture to take testimonies or song requests, and that’s OK. But the concept of sharing what God has done is a powerful tool to remind one another of His ability to come through.

In the middle of a strange passage in Revelation 12 that looks like something straight from Lord of the Rings, John the Revelator is speaking about defeating Satan, the “accuser of our brethren.” I quote from the King James Version because I think it says it best: “They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony” (Revelation 12:11).

I have come to recognize that the fiercest attacks we face as believers are the lies of the enemy. He takes any difficult circumstance and does everything in his power to infuse it with doubt, fear, confusion and despair. But this passage gives us such a powerful antidote combination: the blood of the Lamb (that is, the blood of Christ, which He already shed, meaning He has already won the battle on our behalf), and the word of our testimony.

What is a testimony? Merriam-Webster defines it several ways, but my favorite is “firsthand authentication of a fact.” In a court of law, offering eyewitness testimony is one of the most compelling ways to convince a jury. In the community of faith, a testimony is simply sharing what God has done.

Many people consider their testimony to be a life transformed by Christ, which is part of it. But each of us who serves God has hundreds, if not thousands, of stories about the goodness of God and what He has done. Each of those is a testimony, and this passage in Revelation shows us how key our testimonies are to overcoming the work of the enemy. It’s one reason why we must continually share those stories of what God is doing in our midst.

How do we make this part of our lives and our churches? As leaders, there are some simple ways for us to help people build each other’s faith through testimonies.

A testimony spurs us on to believe that God can do in our lives what He has done in the lives of others.

Ask. A few years back, I led a missions trip to Argentina, where my Uncle Rocky and Aunt Sherry Grams are missionaries. We stayed at the Bible school they lead. On several occasions, my uncle stopped a student who happened to be walking by and asked, “Would you share your testimony with these people?”

Some students shared faith-building stories of God’s provision for attending the school. Others talked about how God was making a way for them to plant a church in their home city. Still others shared how they came to Christ.

On several occasions, I heard my Aunt Sherry ask a member of our team, “Tell me your story.” It left such an impression on me that I started asking people this simple question I had never before thought to ask. It’s amazing the things we hear when we ask people to tell their stories or share a testimony.

Listen. One of the most powerful responses to discouragement is to listen to the testimonies of others. Recently, a fellow church planter shared with a few of us in a Facebook group how discouraged she was. Attendance had fallen and finances were not what they needed to be. She was questioning whether the church could go on.

But this week, the church planter shared about the many visitors on Sunday, and receiving a miraculous offering that will not only provide but encouraged the ministry team to believe God wants them to continue. My heart leapt! If God can do this for them, He can do the miraculous for others! That is the power of hearing a testimony. It spurs us on to believe that God can do in our lives what He has done in the lives of others.

Share. A fear of sounding prideful or overly spiritual sometimes keeps us from sharing the amazing things God has done. It’s so important to take time to give Him the glory whenever we have the opportunity. This is not only an encouragement to other believers, but it can help unbelievers move closer to faith as well.

My husband, Wayne, suffered from a terrible sickness for three years. After an intensive time of prayer and fasting by our church family, Wayne experienced a miraculous recovery. The picture on his driver’s license was taken when Wayne was very sick. Without fail, every time he pulled it out, the person would say something like “Whoa, what happened to you?! You look so much better now!”

One day, I realized this is an opportunity for us to share my husband’s testimony! It was amazing to see the responses when we told people God had healed Wayne, because they could see the evidence with their own eyes. It’s easy just to let those moments pass us by, but God can use those simple conversations to reveal himself to those who don’t yet know Him.

Remember. Over and over in the Psalms, we see David reminding himself of the faithfulness of God. It’s important to write things down, because we so easily forget when circumstances change how many specific times God has come through in amazing ways. Recount those actual stories, and remind one another in the difficult moments that He can do it again. This is how we overcome — by the blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony.