Something keeps me speaking

Daily writing promptHave you ever performed on stage or given a speech?View all responses

I grew up very shy, uncomfortable interacting with people and afraid to speak in front of a group of people. I only had two friends in high school, a popular girl I had a crush on and dated quite a bit, but I was always nervous when I was around her and a guy who was frequently reaching out to me and inviting me to hang out with him. One of my classes required us to make a speech every six weeks and that was terrifying and tormenting.

Then in my freshman year of college I attended a Spirit-led Christian group on campus, and something immediately changed inside of me. I suddenly saw the 60 or so people present as welcoming, not threatening. From that moment on they were close friends and because of Jesus Christ we opened our hearts to each other.

The incredible change in my heart and life became a fire inside of me that made me want to tell other people about Jesus. I still felt afraid, but Christ in me gave me the courage to speak up and talk about Him on campus and in churches. I became very comfortable speaking to groups of people and even went to seminary and became a preacher. I loved preaching and feeling the presence of Jesus flowing from my heart to a group of people, but I was discouraged that few people opened their heart back to me. I eventually stepped aside from the religious pulpit and became a full-time motivational speaker for 12 years, until voice problems caused me to quit.

But even with a quirky sounding voice, the fire in me kept me speaking. I began to blog about Jesus and post about Him on social media. I wrote several books based on spiritual insights. I went to inner city neighborhoods and shared Jesus with discouraged people on the streets. Then as a result of something my wife did, I was hired to be the chaplain at a Salvation Army men’s rehab. There I gave speeches 5 times a week (with my quirky voice) and continually counseled men individually.

I discovered that I was deeply touched by hearing the men’s stories of brokenness and despair and I loved to see how my heart-felt listening could soothe and even heal their pain. After 5 1/2 years as the chaplain, The Salvation Army asked my wife and me if we would like to start a non-traditional church with them.

We jumped at the idea. For the next ten years we had sermon-free church. We would worship by inviting people to passionately sing to Jesus and then we would open the meeting for anyone present to speak as they felt-prompted by the Holy Spirit. Ordinary people made short heart-felt speeches about Jesus. They prayed out loud. They read Bible verses to the group. They encouraged one another. They celebrated joys and comforted each other’s pain. They were eloquent!

This was not the way Salvation Army churches functioned, but they allowed us to do this for 10 amazing years. Eventually a leader was sent to oversee their work in Nashville, and he disapproved of the way we did church and made us stop. My wife and I had no alternative but to leave and to continue to proclaim Jesus and to empower and release other people to do so.

Most of my “speaking” is now online. I have a series of videos on YouTube, but mostly I write. I wake up early every morning with fresh thoughts about Jesus in my mind, post them on Facebook and turn them into a blog. I can’t stop speaking about the glorious wonders of the living, resurrected Jesus Christ.

[image error]Pexels.com" data-medium-file="https://stevesimms.files.wordpress.co..." data-large-file="https://stevesimms.files.wordpress.co..." src="https://stevesimms.files.wordpress.co..." alt="" class="wp-image-38319" />Photo by Matheus Bertelli on Pexels.com