From sacred witness to weekly spectacle — how the church’s most authentic expression of faith began to lose its truthfulness.
By Rev Toyin Kehinde
There was a time when testimony time in church was sacred. A woman would rise quietly, voice trembling, and recount how God healed her child or provided a job after months of waiting.
The congregation would listen with reverence, thank God together, and move on. The focus was never on the speaker but on the Savior.
Fast-forward to today, and the atmosphere is very different. Testimonies have become the most anticipated — and sometimes the most theatrical — part of worship.
They are recorded, edited, shared online, and replayed thousands of times. The applause is louder, the language more dramatic, and the stories more sensational.
Somewhere between the pulpit and the platform, TRUTH began to take a back seat.
From Worship to Performance
Testimonies are meant to be honest accounts of God’s actions, not performances for an audience. Yet, as churches embrace a culture of spectacle, there’s a growing temptation to make stories more exciting.
A minor illness becomes a near-death experience; a modest financial gain is described as a windfall. In seeking to inspire, we sometimes drift from authenticity to theatrics.
This isn’t just a local issue—it’s a global trend. Believers everywhere feel pressure to prove God’s power, sometimes at the expense of honesty. But when we embellish reality to make God look good, we dishonor Him.
“Truth doesn’t need decoration. The miraculous is not more powerful because it sounds dramatic — it’s powerful because it’s real.”
Part of this shift can be traced to the rise of the “stage-testimony” — the highly curated, emotion-charged segment of many services. Ushers guide participants to the microphone, media teams record from the best angles, and sometimes, even “testimony coaches” help members phrase their stories for maximum effect. Of course, structure is not the problem here. Order is biblical.
But when spontaneity disappears and sincerity is replaced with storytelling flair, we risk turning the altar into a stage and the worshipper into an actor.
There are instances where people feel pressured to make their stories sound more dramatic because they believe ordinary miracles will not be celebrated. They see others getting attention for extraordinary testimonies and feel compelled to match that energy. The church becomes a competition for applause, not a community of truth.
The Psychology of Exaggeration
Exaggeration is effective in the short term: it moves people, wins approval, and creates emotional moments. In church, it can even seem spiritual. But every exaggeration, no matter how well-intentioned, takes us further from the truth.
At its core, exaggeration is about significance. People want their experiences to matter. When dramatic stories are rewarded, exaggeration becomes a habit. But over time, this erodes trust. When the truth comes out, it damages not just individuals, but the credibility of the entire faith community.
The digital age has multiplied the problem. A testimony that once inspired fifty people in a small congregation can now reach half a million viewers online. And in the world of social media, where engagement drives influence, the temptation to embellish stories is stronger than ever. Churches want content that “goes viral.” Media teams crave testimonies that trend.
The line between documentation and dramatization becomes blurry. But the gospel of Christ is not a product to be marketed; it is a truth to be lived and told faithfully.
“The Church was never called to impress the world. It was called to bear witness — truthfully.”
When testimonies lose their truth, faith loses its foundation. Members begin to question whether the miracles they hear about are genuine. The watching world dismisses the church as manipulative or gullible.
And sincere believers who once found encouragement in others’ stories begin to feel betrayed. Even worse, false or exaggerated testimonies can push people to make dangerous decisions — giving beyond their means, abandoning medical treatment, or making decisions based on misleading claims of “instant miracles.” The emotional damage can last for years.
If testimony time is to recover its original purpose, the church must return to honesty. Leaders must teach that truth — even when simple — is powerful. The story of God’s grace in ordinary life is as miraculous as any dramatic healing.
Churches should also set boundaries: testimonies must be verifiable where possible. Platforms must not reward exaggeration, and members should be reminded that the goal is not to entertain but to edify. True testimony brings glory to God because it is true. The miracle may be small, but honesty behind it makes it shine brighter.
We live in a time when faith is tested not by persecution, but by the lure of performance. If we continue to value applause over authenticity, we risk losing the church’s moral authority.
But the age of performance can end—if believers rediscover the beauty of simple, sincere truth. In the end, the most powerful testimony is not the one that goes viral, but the one that is true.
I come in peace
Toyin Kehinde
