You are a WITNESS

A witness for what? A witness for who?

According to Isaiah 43, you are both sons and daughters of God (believers) from all over the world (east, west, north, and south) v5-6, called by His name, “whom I have created for My glory, whom I formed and made v7” to “lead out those who have eyes but are blind, who have ears but are deaf v8.” “You are My witnesses,” declares the Lord, “and My servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe Me and understand that I am He v10a.” Your life will testify to the world that “…before Me, no God was formed, nor will there ever be one after Me v10b” You have been chosen by God to share with the world that, “…I am the Lord, and apart from Me there is no savior v11.” He has “revealed and saved and proclaimed” God has done these things, “and not some foreign gods among you” so you may show the world: “You are My witnesses,” declares the Lord, “that I am God v12.”

What is my job as a witness?

Exactly what you have just read above. As for the specifics regarding YOU, (when will I get there? How will I get there? Who will be with me?) and so on, you must grow in relationship and the things of God in order to better understand and have answers to these questions. In other words, God Himself will reveal them to you according to His will. Again, your life, son and daughter of God, has been chosen to testify that there is only one Savior and that is God—the God of Jesus Christ. Your life will lead others to Him, the only One Who can save any of us from an eternity in hell.

What this Post IS NOT vs What this Post IS.

Many have asked: “if Jesus isn't real, why go through all of the trouble to discredit and mock Him?” This isn't THAT kind of post and therefore, will not address IFs aligned with the aforementioned question. Instead, this post will begin with this IF: IF you going through all you have been, some of you, your entire lives, does not CONVINCE you that there is something different about YOU, I am not sure what to tell you.

Fundamental Terms: Agnostic vs Atheist. What is the difference? There are some people who before they are able to believe God is real, they have questions. This is absolutely valid! Conversations with these people will probably include: “maybe there is something out there, but I don’t know what that something is. Maybe that something doesn’t exist.” We would identify this person as an agnostic. According to Merriam-Webster’s online dictionary, an agnostic person is: “one who is not committed to believing in either the existence or nonexistence of God or a god.”

An atheist on the other hand, also according to Merriam-Webster's online dictionary is: “a person who does not believe in the existence of God or any gods: one who subscribes to or advocates atheism.”

I thought it important to review these major terms that are often a part of the faith conversation because I do not believe it is fair to assume anyone automatically knows what each term means. What has MY life as a witness been like?

I will briefly share some of my testimonies with you below in the next section of this post so you may compare experiences. If you can relate, I urge you to ask God if He has chosen YOU as one of His witnesses.

WARNING!

Though we can receive many gifts from Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:4), the answer to this witness question will help you to work within the boundaries of your calling and authority as well as pray according to God’s will for someone like you. We often get into trouble not only worldly but spiritually as well, not to mention having to manage unnecessary frustrations when we step outside of God’s will for the gifts and callings He has given us. God has given each of us a specific job. He has many jobs available. While not everyone can do the same job, everyone is an essential worker for the Lord. There is one body but many parts (read 1 Corinthians 12). If we all fight for one position (I have seen this quite a lot with the five-fold ministries): apostle, prophet, teacher, preacher, evangelist (Ephesians 4:11-13) nothing gets done. We also know this famous phrase: “a house divided cannot stand” (read Matthew 12: 22-28). This goes against God’s will for His church (The NIV heading of Ephesians 4: Unity and Maturity in the Body of Christ).

My Brief Testimonies…

-Before I was born, the option to abort me was a very real possibility because my mother was 14 years old when she became pregnant with me. -Because my mom was young, from the age of 1-2, I essentially grew up with my aunts and uncles. If grandma said not to do something and they did, I would tell on them. Even at a young age I had a very good understanding of right and wrong and would stand firm in that position. Some have called me stubborn. It’s possible they mischaracterized me. -My grandmother (my mother's mother) tells me that once when she was sick, she did not know how I knew to go grab a bottle of alcohol to pat on her forehead (believed to be some remedy in Jamaican culture), but I did. Even at 2 maybe approaching 3 years old, it was evident I was given a gift to serve others. -When I was around 3 years old, I choked on a piece of food at the dinner table and at some point, I died. I can give details about what happened in the back seat of the car while my family members rushed me to the hospital. I can tell you that my vantage point was from hovering over my physical body which was face up but lifeless. I spent time in the hospital and hated eggs afterwards because morning after morning until I was released, that's what I was fed. This is a lot of detail for a young child, no? -Between 3-4 years old I began traveling on my own. I took busses and taxis to visit my father's family where they lived. I am told by family that everyone knew me and would look out for me on my travels. -I fell off of a wheelbarrow and onto something I can't recall, between 5-6 years old and almost lost my right eye. I still have the scar to prove it. -Between 6 and 7 years old, I was dealing with situations no child should ever. Generational demons that became mine to fight because I inherited them. -My life has always been marked by transitions (moving). At 8 years old, I flew on a plane alone to move to America. At 11, I moved to Florida. -Between the ages of 12 and 19 (middle school, high school, and a year and a half of community college), I partied, I drank, I smoked—I thought I was LIVING. -Mind you, I was baptized at 15 years old. This changed some things, but against what some people may believe, being baptized did not change everything. God has spent many years taking me through experience after experience to teach me what I know now. -Between the ages of 19-27 I lived in NYC, Pennsylvania, back in Florida, NY, and back to Pennsylvania right before moving back to Florida in November of 2018. -Between the ages of 19 and 27 were some of the toughest. Between 27 and now 29, have also been met with significant challenges. This would require a much more in-depth post. I will share as the Lord leads me to. At this time, what I will share is this: in 2019 when my supernatural experiences become more intense, I somehow knew to seek out a church with a prophet because I believed this person would be able to give me some answers as to what was happening to me. Let me make this very clear, I have attended church off and on since I was a very small child, not once did any of my church experiences prepare me for what I went through. This is not a rebuke to the church as a whole. If God saw it fit for me to align earlier in life with a church that could have helped me, it would have happened. Please pray for the Church as a whole and allow God to help you to forgive her.

It Got REAL, Y’ALL… The church where I began to receive answers had many gifted members as a part of their administrative boards. Until this encounter, I had not ever experienced this kind of order or power move through a church. My very first visit to this church changed my life. Subsequent visits did not disappoint. Each time I was there, so was God. On one of these occasions, I was consoled by a member of this church’s administrative team because y’all, I was bawling. It seemed uncontrollable. I remember the words the prophetess of this church said to me about why I was bawling the way I was, but the life changing revelations did not stop there. The member of this church’s administrative team that I mentioned above who consoled me, we locked eyes and she asked me: “when you tell people things, do they happen? (Remembering telling a friend they would get into the school they were worried they wouldn't get into, this was completely supernatural by the way), I said, “yes”) and kept my eyes peering into this woman's eyes because deep down, I knew I was different and knew even a little, what she was about to tell me, even if I was not ready to hear it because I did not then nor now fully understand how my life would drastically change. I won't share the full details of what she told me, but after she tells me, I fall to the ground as if my knees gave way and she fell to console me. I was torn apart in this moment. As I sobbed, I said to her, "Satan has been trying to kill me for a long time." She then reassured me that he would no longer try to kill me.

Takeaways from this Post… So you see, if you're about to write off any of your life's experiences as insignificant, don't. God has always had a plan to prosper you, to give you a hope and a future (Jeremiah 29:11). Before you even existed in your mother's womb, He knew you and had a destiny planned out for you (Jeremiah 1:5). Contrary to popular belief, life does NOT begin at conception. It begins even BEFORE your parents come together resulting in YOU. Everything you have ever faced. Every moment you thought suicide was the better option but something stopped you. Every single source of rejection. Every freak accident. Every person you have ever met. Every EXPERIENCE you have ever had, prepares you and is still preparing you to be the WITNESS God created YOU to be. This job is an incredible responsibility. It requires that everything about you change so that you will be a walking, talking, power-full, HOLY SPIRIT-filled vessel for God that through YOU, it will be proven to others that He is real.

As I type this post, I sense the Lord leading me to type a Part II, so I am hoping to share more with you all soon. In the meantime: I challenge you to: 1.) Seek God for yourself. Get to know Him. Enjoy a relationship with Him. 2.) Ask God: "Who am I?" I asked the Lord this question out loud on January 27th, 2021. it is now March 3rd 2021 and God revealed to me yesterday, March 2nd 2021, that I am one of the WITNESSES He has chosen. Be patient with the Lord after you ask Him questions. He never responds how or when we expect Him to but instead, when He knows we are ready to receive the answer. 3.) Ask God to help you to find things to be thankful for in every situation because it all matters. I have always wondered how He expects us to be thankful at all times even when we are suffering (1 Thessalonians 5:18). I think I understand how this verse applies for my life, but I suggest you ask God how it may apply to your own life.