As we step into a new year, God is not asking you to steward the whole world—He is revealing your Eden. In this episode, Janell invites you to slow down, listen, and map the ministry God has entrusted to you right now. Through Jesus’ model of discipleship, prophetic reflection, and practical prayer, you’ll be encouraged to tend the small, surrender control, and trust God for increase in His perfect timing.
Shownotes here.
Several years ago the Lord took me on a journey into the unknown. Have you ever been there? Having just come out of a season of suffering, I thought I was off the hook and could go back to living the good life. However God invited me to begin pouring out what He had given me on others. It started with a Bible Study on the book of Job. I wish I could tell you that I enthusiastically jumped at this chance, but to be honest I had a pretty sour attitude. Have you ever listed all the reasons you can’t obey what God is calling you to do? Yeah, it didn’t work out for me either.
The Bible study started as a Facebook group and as I was getting closer to the launch date, my heart started to swell with compassion. I realized the weight of God’s call to minister to people who were experiencing pain. That burden for others became my cross, and I knew I couldn’t carry it on my own. Every morning I sat at the feet of Jesus and asked for Him to show me what I should share with the hurting people in my group. Out of that time came the beginning of this book:
“But you will receive power and ability when the Holy Spirit comes upon you; and you will be My witnesses [to tell people about Me] both in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and Samaria, and even to the ends of the earth.”
Acts 1:8 AMP
When I was writing about our identity in Christ, His last words jumped out at me. What I noticed about the statement Jesus made in this passage was that He wasn’t proclaiming our calling, but our identity. The word “be” is used, and this word is so important for us to grab hold of. You are His witness now, but you are also becoming His witness. Everything changes when we allow God to reframe our perspective on our identity.
“Where Are My Witnesses?”
In the summer of 2024 I was awakened daily for an entire week by a voice that cried, “Where are my witnesses?” Here is the breakdown of the way I responded to this question:
Day 1: That was weird
Day 2: What is going on?
Day 3: I realized it was Jesus
Day 4: Why is He asking me?
Day 5: My heart began to break for the lost
Day 6: Shaken to the core
Day 7: Accepted His invitation
In this question, Jesus is addressing all who call Him “Lord.” Jesus is asking us to all accept this invitation to becoming His witness. Remember, God’s definition of a “witness” isn’t a calling, but an identity.
Witnessing isn’t just something you do, it’s who you are.
I find it encouraging to know that when we take a stand, there is power to back us up. Here is the invitation of Jesus (from Acts 1:8)
Align with Truth
Receive power
Take the stand
We tend to overcomplicate sharing the gospel with others. For the sack of simplicity, witnessing starts with a testimony. I’m sure you hear and look for testimonies all the time when you search for the right product to buy on Amazon, right? You want to know if this purchase lives up to its claims. Obviously we are not selling the gospel, but you get the picture. Let’s take a look at what the word “testimony” means in Hebrew to see if we can bring some clarity to witnessing.
Testimony
The Hebrew word for testimony is edut (עֵדוּת), which means to “return” or to “do again.” This is where we get the word for testament, as in the Old and New Testament. A testimony is an account or record that bring clarity about how something happened or about the character of a person.
The pictograph for the word edut is an eye, which makes sense to us because a witness brings clarity or vision. People are lost, and the Bible says that their eyes are full of darkness. Have you ever tried to find something in the dark? It is nearly impossible to locate a thing when you can’t see.
You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden.Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.
Matthew 5:14-16 (NIV)
Jesus calls us the light of the world, and this is giving us a visual of what it means to be a living testimony of Him who called us light. We have been given the ability and the authority to share about Jesus with people who don’t know Him. In Ephesians 1:19-20 Paul says, “I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms” (NLT). Power from God gives us the ability, and our seat in the heavenly realm is what gives us the authority. Hallelujah! This is good news.
The Ancient Path/The Acts Church
I have a question for you. Did Jesus say, “Bring people to Church” or did He say, “Go and tell?” The problem with the western model of Christianity is that it assumes Christ called us to make converts, but if we study the way it was done in the book of Acts, the Kingdom model is to make disciples. The Ancient Acts Church didn’t expect the lost to come to them. They went out into the world and found people, sharing the good news of Jesus into places of darkness.
We have played it safe in the west and have gotten it wrong.
At this point, some of you may be getting nervous that I’m proposing we all leave the Church. I would never suggest throwing the baby out with the bathwater, but I do want to challenge the perspective of the Western Church. The way we do things isn’t working. We have a lot of people attending church who are biblically illiterate and have negated their personal responsibility of being God’s witness. I have been one of them!
Secular/Sacred Divide
In the west, many believe that only certain people are called into ministry and everyone else is in the secular world must support those in the ministry. People who are on the secular side of things are on their own, and there is a lack of resources to help them share about the hope of Christ. If we look at what scripture says about us, disciples of Jesus, it is clear that there is no secular/sacred divide.
“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.”
1 Peter 2:9 (NIV)
There is no distinct line of segregation in the Kingdom of God. The Kingdom of Heaven has no separation; we are all in ministry, and we are all full-time. Many of the apostles were in the secular field doing the sacred work of God (ex: Paul worked to support himself so he wouldn’t be a burden to the people he preached to).
Every believer is responsible for being a light in the darkness on an individual level. I also believe that we are called to be a city on the hill, a light to the world as a community of believers. Unless each person is looking unto Jesus for instructions, this will be an impossible task. Christ is the Master Weaver, braiding the fabric of our lives together, creating a tapestry of testimonies that point others to Him.
You are a priest under heaven, anointed and appointed by the Lord Jesus Christ.
Entering the Wardrobe
The Chronicles of Narnia is one of my favorite book series. In the third book, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, the children find themselves in Narnia but they don’t know where they are going or when they will get there. When I read the story, I recognized the invitation to step into the move of God— He is moving behind the scenes even if we can’t see.
Another example of God weaving things behind the scenes is found in the story of Esther. She was just an ordinary Jewish girl in Persian captivity. How could she have known that beauty treatments would lead to her going before the king (a dangerous risk) of the Great Persian Empire and end up saving her people from annihilation? God is still looking for ordinary people to carry out His plans and purposes in the earth. Are you willing to step into the unknown?
Becoming a Ready Witness
Ways to Become a Ready Witness:
Earnestly pray (Heb. 4:16, Mat. 5:10)
Have a willing spirit (Rev. 12:11) to tell the truth in love (Prov. 12:22)
Renew your mind (Rom. 12:2) and commit to the daily practices, including asking God to govern your mind (Rom. 8:6)
Pray and look for opportunities to share Jesus
Testimonies are ongoing, just like our salvation. Now, I’m not denying the finished work of the cross, but I am referencing the transformation we undergo as the Lord shapes us to look more like Christ. My prayer is that you would accept His invitation to become God’s witness today.
“So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to desire and to work for His good pleasure.”
Janell Kremer 
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