Another exciting victory from Jesus

“So - this article is – um - about those little – er – short ‘filler’ words that people use – like – in the middle of sentences – you know?

Yes, written down, the above sentence is incredibly infuriating. Yet, to say it aloud does not sound too different from how people talk to each other every single day.

Long considered to be a sign of stupidity or ineptness, linguists are saying this is unfair. Often, the people who make these sounds, in between actual words recognised in the English dictionary, are being especially conscious of who they are talking to.

Professor Michael Handford, a professor of applied linguistics and English language at Cardiff University, says there are two main reasons people use these filler words. Often these are known as “discourse markers” (‘you know’, ‘so’) or “filled pauses”( ‘um’, ‘er’).

“The functions they fill are often interactional and cognitive,” he told The Independent. “The interactional function is to do with politeness. If you invite somebody to a party and they say no without any of those markers they will appear rude probably. If you say ‘um, well, you know, sorry’ it makes it much more polite. They play a really important politeness function.”

The above article came from the internet. I wanted to explain the many words that can make no sense to non-English readers. I am putting these “discourse markers” and “filled pauses” in parenthesis because some people might live in countries where English is not their main language and may not understand the words that are discourse markers and filled pauses. I’m sorry if they confuse some readers, but I felt like I should transpose every word of people’s testimonies, rather than edit them. So, here is the testimony you have been waiting for. Without further adieu…

“Hi lovelies. I’m Lisa…

(So) to start we need to go back to the very beginning. I was only three or four years old when my dad decided he wanted to find a church to attend because he thought I was going to start asking questions about God and about creation, and all of that. For a little bit of background, my mom was saved when she was a teenager, but she had a fall away from Christ. (So) at this point, her and my dad when they were looking for a Christian church to go to, she did rededicate. And my dad kind of had a very mixed background, but he was not a Christian. (So) at this point, when they started looking for a Christian church, he did eventually come to Jesus. (So) from a young age around three or four, I grew up in a Christian home. We were attending church regularly. I was even enrolled in a Christian school for when I was in kindergarten and then partway through first grade.

But we did end up leaving that church and going to a different church, and the pre-school Christian school I was apart of—not pre-school—kindergarten, that I was a part of, was a part of our old church. (So) my parents actually enrolled me in public school after that. I was super, super thankful, for the most part, to be raised in a Christian home. My parents really tried to live their lives for God, and to teach me about God, to get me to church every week, and basically to live by an example.

(So) from a young age I learned about God, learned the Bible stories, (you know), in Sunday school, and at home. We would pray as a family together. (So) from a young age I learned about God, and I began to love Him and know more about Him.

Then when I was eight years old, my family and I went to the Christmas Eve service at our church. And the pastor, at the end of the message, kind of gave a salvation talk. He talked about, (you know), when Jesus came down to the world because, of course, that’s what Christmas is all about. We celebrate the day that Jesus was born, that our Saviour came into the world. (So) he (just) talked about how we need to be repentant of our sin. How we are all sinners. In Romans it says, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” And this was the first time even though I had been learning about God, and I knew about Jesus, this was the first time that this was really hitting me and things (just) kind of clicked for me. I realized that when Jesus died on the cross for my sins, that I needed to repent of my sin and ask Him to come into my life to be my Lord and Saviour, and to really start a relationship with Jesus. (So) he continued on with his message. And at the end he asked if anybody wanted to accept Christ into their life. And I didn’t at that point, but I went home and (just) for some reason, at this point, it (just) really clicked with me. And I kept (just) thinking about it and trying to understand it.

Then, (you know), honestly, it was the Holy Spirit (just) beginning to reveal truth to me, and opening my heart to want to accept Jesus. And (so) we went home that night and I had been thinking about it the whole ride home and then that evening. And finally I (just) asked my dad, “How do I accept Christ as my Saviour? How do I ask Him into my life?”

And my dad (just) told me all you have to do is pray and ask Him. And I’m (like), “Will you help me?” And (so) my dad actually led me in a prayer to accept Jesus into my life, and for Him to forgive me of my sins and become my Lord and Saviour.

I know I was young, but I can tell you that this was a genuine commitment to Jesus. Even now (just) (like) thinking back on it, I totally remember what it was (like) when that (just) clicked in my heart and in my head, the need and (just) the knowledge that I needed Jesus in my life. (So) that from that point on I was saved and had begun a relationship with Jesus.

My family and I would continue to go to church. I continued to learn more about Jesus, and I eventually got baptized. As well, my dad and I got baptized together, which was really cool.

However something that I hadn’t fully grasped was kind of the discipline part of being a Christian. And what I mean by that is being disciplined in reading God’s word every day and continually praying to Jesus. I would pray, for the most part, every day. But I hadn’t developed that discipline of getting into God’s word and reading the bible every day, which is really how God communicates to us, and how we can grow, really grow further and more into our relationship with Christ.

 In junior high I really felt that struggle of wanting to please God, but then on the other had having the fleshly desires, (like) the want to be popular and to fit in at school, and all of that. Some days I would honor God with my decisions and choose to follow Him. And then other days I would put my desires before God. And it was (just) the constant struggle and battle. Now I don’t have some crazy testimony or story where, (you know), I went off and did all these drugs, or I got arrested, or I, (you know), gave myself away to all these guys. I don’t have a story (like) that. I know that I some people’s testimony.

But my struggle still was whether to put God first in my life or to put my desires first. And this continued to happen. And this is going to continue to happen throughout a believer’s life. That is (just) our struggle with our own flesh and our own sinful desire.

But my freshman year of high school, in the spring time I actually went on a missions trip with my church. And every year the high schoolers and the college students would go on a mission trip to Mexico, to help some of the churches down there and (just) help people in need. We would build houses. There was VBS teams for kids in the areas at the churches that we would do and stuff, a lot of really awesome stuff. This was something that I had looked forward [to] since I was in junior high. I knew I wanted to go on this trip.

(So) my freshman year I went and it was during this trip that I felt God really speaking to me, and really place a desire on my heart. He (just) revealed to me that I was not putting Him first in my life and that I was not actively pursuing Him. I had made this commitment to Him. He was in my life but I wasn’t actively pursuing a relationship with Him. It was during this trip that I learned what it meant to serve God. And I also learned what I meant to worship God. Not (just) in actual worship when we’re singing praises to Jesus, but to worship God with our life and with your actions.

(So) this is kind of the second part of my testimony. I was already saved when I was eight years old. But after this trip to Mexico when I (just) felt (like) God was speaking to me, I kind of rededicated my life. I wouldn’t say (like) I officially (like) asked God, ‘I want to be rededicated to You.’ But I was praying with Him, and I (just) felt this desire that I knew I needed to make some changed in order to put Him first.  I started making reading my Bible a priority and really trying to do it every day, and be disciplined in it. I also tried to be more involved at my church, (so) [that] I could (just) learn more, but then also serve Him.

And it was kind of from that point on that I really saw growth in my walk with God. I felt a lot closer to Jesus. I saw myself changing more, my desires were different. It was put on my heart to be a light and an example at my school and to my friends. Even though I was definitely nowhere perfect, I made plenty of mistakes, and there were times that I didn’t choose to honor God. But it was more a priority in my life to place God first and to really try. Even when I would fall I would get back up again and choose to follow Jesus.

Having Jesus in my life I can honestly say that I have a certain peace and a certain joy. It’s not happiness, which can be washed away when something when a storm comes in this life, when something bad happens, when things go wrong, things don’t go according to plan. It’s this joy that, through any circumstance, I know that Jesus is with me, that He sees the whole picture. He sees what my life looks (like), and I am in His hands. And no matter what I go through I know that He loves me, that He has saved me. He has redeemed me, and His plans are good.

(So) that is my testimony. My story of how I can to know Jesus and how I entered in to a personal relationship with Jesus. If you’re watching this and you have never made that commitment to Jesus, and you want to, it is so simple. I (just) want you to know that Jesus came down to this earth. He lived a perfect life here. I died on the cross for our sins even though He had lived a perfect life. And then He rose again three days later which He defeated sin, He defeated death. (So) now we can enter into a personal relationship with God and be forgiven of our sin. And then when we die we go to heaven and live in eternity with Him. All you have to do is pray. Ask Jesus to come into your life to be your Lord and Saviour, and repent of your sin. Which repenting doesn’t mean to (just) be sorry for something, but it actually means to turn away. (So) you are, yes, saying sorry for your sin to God but then you are turning away from it and choosing to follow Him. (So) if you believe that Jesus died on the cross for your sins and that God raised Him from the dead and you accept Jesus as your Lord and Saviour, you will be saved. It’s as simple as that because this is purely the grace of Jesus.

But I hope you all enjoyed this video….”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vvydZRRWTpc