Going Back to My Beginning: My Personal Testimony Begins

In my house there are a lot of big rugs with fancy designs on them. The rugs are worn, and they’re prickly when you sit on them. The house is cold, so I’m sitting on a pretty, prickly rug instead of on the floor. All around me are designs: designs on the rugs, designs on the bedspreads, and designs on the wallpaper. My mom loves designs, patterns and colors. Some of the walls in our house don’t have designs, but they’re painted funny colors. My dining room has pink walls and a big fancy carpet that's really big. My mom likes to decorate and she likes to have parties. When people come to visit they talk about my fancy house. They like the big dining room with the pink walls and they like my mom.

I want to make a picture. I draw a vase. I put flowers on the vase. I draw a gray flower, a green flower, a blue flower and an orange flower. The flowers make a nice design on the vase like the designs I see around me. I color the walls behind the vase a funny color. I choose orange. Orange goes good with the fancy vase with the flower designs. I like it. I think my mom will like it too. 

 
Sharing Your Journey

Consider How and Where to Begin: Your Personal Testimony

Where does one begin their spiritual autobiography? I began by sifting through old photographs, old memories and old art work. I sifted through my childhood. As I sifted, I looked for threads, or commonalities, that weaved their way through my life. I discovered that much of what I believed about God took root when I was just a small child. I wrote down what I discovered in my journal. I picked the most vivid memories and I put them to words. I didn't worry about how each memory had a part in my story. I just wrote and let the "parts" reveal themselves. 

Looking back on my journal entries, I am satisfied with the sifting process that I used. It suited me and it helped me make sense of my past. Consider what process for "remembering" will suit you. Maybe you want to list memories in your journal? Then you will have a place to go back to, so you can decide which memories you'd like to further explore. Perhaps, you want to start with your favorite early memories? Maybe you'd like to create some sketches that connect you with your early years?  What images would you include in such a sketch? Give yourself time to sift through your early years. Give yourself time to decide what has always mattered most to you. 

Trust God to help you begin your personal testimony. My spiritual memoir is a Christian testimony, because my belief in Jesus Christ was central to my story when I began sharing. Trust that God will be with you as you share and that He will help you tell your own story in your own way. Use your journal for the sifting process so you can reflect, organize and connect your past experiences with your present spirituality. Let your journal become a place to explore and document your past, so that you can find the pieces of your true story memoir. Let your journal become a place to make sense out of who you have become and the ways your past is a part of who you are today. Regardless of your approach, or beliefs, your journal can be the place for you to begin to find a voice for your spiritual autobiography.

Tags For This Journey: spiritual autobiography,spiritual memoir,personal testimony,christian testimony,true story memoir

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