From the Editor

Telling Our Stories

STACEY MCKENZIE

Joining in the Work of the Spirit

When was the last time you shared the story of how you came to faith in Christ? About your life before becoming aware of your need for forgiveness, and the “crossing over” you experienced from darkness to light? Or about the tangible work of the Spirit in your life?

A friend recently commented that she didn’t remember the last time she had spoken to someone about Jesus—that too many of us during this time were distracted by other things. I thought about it and couldn’t remember the last time I had shared specific details of my salvation transformation story, either.

I think it’s possible to underestimate the power of a simple story—of looking back at spiritual beginnings and seeing what God can do with our recounting of them in the lives of those who listen. Take the Azusa Street revival that began in 1906 as an example. It is regularly referenced in today’s Canadian Pentecostal discourse, revealing that it is still an important part of PAOC’s and wider Canadian Pentecostals’ consciousness. A dive back into the stories from Azusa and those of early Canadian Pentecostal pioneers can stir up the flame of desire for the kingdom in many weary or complacent hearts.

Thinking about my friend’s observations, and having recently read about Canadian pioneers who had life-changing encounters with the Spirit[1] and a few passages from William Seymour’s publication The Apostolic Faith,[2] it wasn’t long before I felt moved to share my own stories of how God worked in my life at the start of my Christian journey. When I did, my words began tumbling out with the same passion and enthusiasm as when the events had just happened.

God used the prophet Ezekiel to encourage His people:

I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. (Ezekiel 36:25-27)

Later, Jesus promises, “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them” (John 14:23). He also promises that we will overcome anything that comes our way in this world by faith in His shed blood and the word of our testimony (Revelation 12:11).

These are timeless promises that God still keeps—to pursue us, change us, and give us new hearts to move us toward doing His will (Jeremiah 31:3; John 3:3; Philippians 2:13). He empowers us to live for Him, share what He has done for us, and make disciples (Acts 2:17; Matthew 28:19).

Soberingly, Jesus also warns, “Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters” (Matthew 12:30). So, in everything, may God keep us on the path of “gathering,” remembering that even Jesus Himself had people walk away from Him when His words were too difficult for His hearers to accept (John 6:63-66). Our heritage compels us to speak anyway (Acts 4:20).

The greatest testimony we have is becoming adopted into God’s family (Ephesians 1:4-5). Yes, many more testimonies may come after that, but our adoption as sons and daughters is the most amazing and lasts for eternity. Sharing how it happened, and the ways in which He sealed our faith through the work of the Holy Spirit, can still impact someone else who hears those stories—whether right away or years later, after the Spirit has brought it to their remembrance time and again, along with the stories of others He may bring along their path.

This article appeared in the October/November/December 2026 issue of testimony/Enrich, a quarterly publication of The Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada. © 2026 The Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada.