Growing up in a Baptist church we always had a time for testimonies. Every Sunday there was either an awkward silence because no one felt bold enough to share, a gushy emotional outpouring from someone you never heard speak before, or our church had a steady testifier who would often conclude his sharing with an an acapella rendition of "there is power in the blood". I technically don’t go to a Baptist church anymore, but I was asked to share my testimony in church last Sunday. It’s been a long time since I shared my heart in public like that. To ease my insomnia, I thought I would share it here.
This is a neatly packaged story for the sake of the reader. Just know that for every great thing God has done in my life there have been times of extreme doubt and desert that have molded me into the woman of faith that I am.
Growing up I had parents who demonstrated compassion for the marginalized in society. My dad was always picking up the drug addicts, psych patients, and "bad kids" from Camden to bring them to church. At a very young age I was exposed to the sights, smells, and messyness of having relationships with those in poverty. I witnessed the grace needed to cover the interactions of broken people (like my family) reaching out to other broken people. The church we attended had a strong emphasis on evangelism and there were constantly missionaries coming from all over the world to share their stories and pictures of their ministries. I distinctly remember one night, when I was in elementary school, listening to a missionary speak. I was staring past their face at the wall where two half globes were mounted. One depicted the western hemisphere which read “GO YE INTO”, and the other depicted the eastern hemisphere which read “ALL THE WORLD”. I thought to myself, I want to go wherever God takes me, but I don’t want to leave my family.
Over the years God developed a fear within me; a fear of not risking everything to follow God. What would I miss if I held onto relationships, and possessions above and beyond the call of God? This fear has brought me to a place that desires to work to alleviate spiritual and material poverty in this world. I know that I’m never going to change the whole world, and I’m never going to eradicate poverty. I also know that it is the role I have been made to take on in this world. Global poverty is a completely overwhelming topic to even think about, let alone work against. However, as part of the kingdom of God, it is a role that not only functions to serve people in need, but also support others within the body of Christ. Christ tells us the battle has already been won, and he has defeated death. As a follower of Christ I have to believe that death has been defeated and I am continuing the work which God has already begun. I will go wherever he leads.
I to Eye 
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