Articles, Bible Questions and Discipleship Guides

Sandra asks, "I want to learn how to outline my testimony. Can you help?"

Thanks for writing. I think it’s great that you want to tell others about the salvation that God brought to you. Thinking about your testimony and being ready to talk to people about it is something I encourage every Christian to do. 

One common approach to a testimony outline is to divide it into three sections. 

In section one, you would talk about your life before knowing Christ. What was true of you then? What were you experiencing?

In section two, you would talk about how you came to know Christ. Tell the story of how God saved you. 

In section three, you would talk about your life now that you are a Christian. What has changed? What has God done for you?

Remember, the core message of your testimony is that God has changed your life since accepting Jesus Christ as your Savior, and you want the person to know God can bring about the same kind of change in their life as well.

This is a pattern that Paul used in talking about his own salvation. He talked about his past, what God had done for him, and how God was using him now. For example, he wrote this: 

For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man’s gospel. For I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ. For you have heard of my former life in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God violently and tried to destroy it. And I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my people, so extremely zealous was I for the traditions of my fathers. But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son to me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles. (Galatians 1:11–16, ESV)

And Sandra, in addition to your personal testimony, it’s also important that you be equipped to clearly communicate the message of the gospel. I have a tool you can use. You might not want to memorize it, but you can walk someone through it who is interested in the gospel. You’ll find my resource here:  https://www.wisdomonline.org/the-gospel