Excerpt: The Value of a Faith Story
Limpopo River, Mozambique by Cary Humphries (National Archives, public domain)
An excerpt from Sharing Your Catholic Faith Story: Tools, Tips, and Testimonies, Chapter One What Is a Faith Story? Part 2 of 4 parts. (Read Part 1 A River winds through your life.
To create this river, God used people who reflect his presence as well as people who don’t. He used both agonizing circumstances with unpredictable outcomes and jubilant celebrations. The Sacraments. More crises than I want to list or remember. Heartaches from losses, such as the sudden death of my father and, decades later, that of a grandson lost through miscarriage. Physical healings from illnesses and car accidents, as well as emotional healings from childhood scars and bad decisions as an adult. God came to my rescue with merciful miracles of unexpected blessings and undeserved narrow escapes. Through all these events flows the river of my story of how God has worked in my life to bring me the joy of a love relationship with him and with the Catholic Church, and how he has equipped me to glorify him as an evangelist.
While I was discovering my story, I kept recalling what Saint Teresa of Calcutta said: “Joy is the net of love by which you can catch souls.” In telling my conversion story, I again saw that luminous joy, this time shining from the faces of my listeners.
I haven’t always valued my conversion story. I didn’t think it mattered to anyone but me. I safeguarded my close friendship with Jesus as our secret, too precious to share. My experience of committing my life to Jesus wasn’t earthshaking like that of the Apostle Paul or as spectacular as the one Scott Hahn recounts in Rome Sweet Home. Nevertheless, God called me—shy, introverted me—to bring hope to others by sharing my story, first in my writing, then face-to-face with one person at a time.
I soon accepted that, although my conversion story is personal, it is not private. I did what Father Nathaniel Meyers once advised in a Tweet: “Show others that you are converted and others will be converted.” People whose own encounters with Christ may not be considered earth-shattering or spectacular respond to how I proclaim my faith.
Yes, I changed from hiding my faith story in my journal and began posting excerpts from my journal on my website for uncountable Internet readers. I found the courage to speak in front of a roomful of people. Now I address audiences in small and large gatherings and at conferences, and I tell my story to thousands of radio listeners. The river is always my resource.
Next time: Someone is waiting for your story, Part 3 of What is a Faith Story?
Link to Part I in the What Is a Faith STory series, A River winds through your life.
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