I moved to Scott City in 4^th grade. My next door neighbor was my age and had moved to Scott City two years before. We hit it off immediately and became best of friends.

We built several things together, including a tree house along the alley and the only way to get in was a fifteen foot rope climb. We built a zip line between two trees along our property line that started twenty feet up in the first tree. We also built a very sturdy fort made from old pallets and old cross arms from electrical power poles.

One day as we were building the fort my neighbor jumped off the top of the eight foot tall structure and landed on a board with a nail sticking out of it. The nail went through the bottom of his tennis shoe through his foot and then through the top of his shoe and was sticking above his foot and shoe about two inches!

When it happened, my neighbor let out the most incredible blood curdling scream. I ran up to him, realized what had happened and told him to sit down so I could pull the board off the bottom of his foot.

He instead started walking home, which was only about twenty five feet away, with the fifteen inch board and nail attached to the bottom of his foot. But with every step on that foot, he would scream again.

As kids we were in awe of what happened to my friend and every kid that heard his story of the incident was in awe also. Just to remind you the definition of awe is: an overwhelming feeling of reverence, admiration, fear. Awe is exactly what we felt when we thought of nails, boards and my neighbor’s situation. I have told that story hundreds of times over the years and so has my neighbor.

The lack of awe in today’s church is because of the lack of testimony by people who have experienced God. God saved you from a life of sin to be a testimony to someone else. It is like we are stepping on nails and not telling anyone about it. Can you imagine having something that traumatic happen to you, but remaining silent about it?

Have you told your story, your testimony? People are experiencing trauma all around us because satan has his yoke around their necks and he controls their lives. They are addicted to drugs, gossip, alcohol, pornography, sports, computers, knowledge and lots of other things.

Satan does his best to keep folks out of churches on Sunday and if people do go to church he wants them to get out of the church quickly and only go once a week. Why does satan not want folks at church? They can hear testimony from others who have experienced God. In my experience, the places where you hear testimony from others at church is in bible studies or Sunday school classes. It isn’t usually in Sunday morning worship services and maybe that is also why there is a lack of awe in our churches.

We need to tell our story, our testimony, not only inside the church but outside the church. God will help you to figure out where, when and how. But you must listen to the Holy Spirit and obey when the opportunity comes along.

Revelation 12:11 They triumphed over him (satan) by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.