Does Your Head Spin at the Thought of an Impromptu Testimony?

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Open Your Mouth and Let God Fill It with the Words He Wants You to Say

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Have you ever had an impromptu opportunity to share your testimony, beliefs or scripture and all you could do was . . . gulp? Even though the Bible tells us to “be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine” (2 Timothy 4:2), we often lack the confidence to speak up when given an opportunity we had not prepared for. This verse used to intimidate me something fierce, especially when I was new to the faith. Then I found Psalm 81:10 in which God tells us to open our mouths wide and He will fill it.

Recently, I had an opportunity to put my faith in Psalm 81:10 to a test and to overcome the intimidation I had been feeling.  In hopes of helping you overcome intimidation as you strive to boldly share your testimony, beliefs and scripture when given the opportunity, I am going to share my recent experience.

Bible Study and Impromptu Example

I occasionally have the opportunity to lead Bible studies with people who hold different beliefs than I do. Generally, I am comfortable doing so because we all agree in advance that we will study what the Bible says without striving to persuade or convince each other to change our views. The Bible study curriculum I use sticks very close to the actual words of scripture. So, when I know there will be topics that likely differ from the other people’s beliefs, I make sure I have studied the material well and am prepared for the discussion.

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One evening as my husband and I were hosting a Bible study with someone I worked with and her husband, I’ll call them Abby and Bob, the material I prepared to discuss caused me to remember a story that I started to share. And then . . . gulp . . . mid-sentence I realized I was venturing out to a topic they might have difficulty with because it was not consistent with their beliefs. I had not yet laid the ground work of scripture for this material. I literally stammered mid-sentence.  Fear absolutely gripped me at that moment.  I almost did not complete my sentence. As I realized it, I stopped, gulped, and prayed, “Lord, where do I go with this now? I am not prepared for this discussion.”

So, what did I do?  Well, it is more important to understand what God did!

God’s Preparation

After I silently prayed, I did something that didn’t really add to the significance of the topic.  I took a deep breath.  Then, I opened my mouth.  And what do you suppose God did?  God filled it with the words that were necessary for Bob and Abby to receive the teaching.

Not only that, but unbeknownst to me, God had already prepared Abby and Bob for the conversation that was about to occur. Their pastor had been presenting a series of lessons on the fallacies of certain doctrine. Although the topic we were discussing was not a part of their pastor’s lessons, our topic came from the same history as the fallacies he had presented.

Oh!  Really!  God had prepared Abby and Bob for what they were about to hear from me through the teachings of their own pastor!  Amazing!

And it continues! Abby and Bob asked some really great questions. Tough questions I was not prepared to answer.

But, what do you think I did? I opened my mouth.

What do you think God did? He filled my mouth with the words that Bob and Abby were prepared to hear!

God is so faithful! Oh, praise the Lord!

We Can Have Confidence

So, why do I share this?  To encourage you to march straight through any intimidation that might reach out and strangle you.  As I said, I was happily proceeding in what I had prepared to say, merely veered off a bit to share a story I had heard many times, when intimidation, fear, gripped me by the throat and I almost stopped.  I was almost too scared to share what God clearly had put in my mind to share and what He had prepared Bob and Abby to receive.

The truth is we have nothing to fear and nothing to overcome because He is all in all and we are more than conquerors through Him.  The recognition of this truth is not flattering to the worker’s sense of heroics, but it is amazingly glorifying to the work of Christ.

Oswald Chambers, Approved Unto God

When we are given opportunities to share, especially when an impromptu discussion begins, we have nothing to fear.  It is in these times we can have confidence in God. We need only pray, open our mouths, and He will fill it with the words He wants us to say. And He will be glorified.

In this situation, I was not glorified by my study and preparation.  God was glorified by His preparation of Abby and Bob and His faithfulness of putting words into my mouth as I spoke.

Praise be to God!  He is faithful!

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