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Testimonies
Why and how would someone become a Christian?
Everyone has a different story of how they became a Christian. God reveals Himself to us in lots of different ways. It's a real encouragement to hear about how God has worked in people's lives, so we thought we'd share with you the testimonies of some SMCU members.
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Libby Main
I was brought up in a Christian family and went to church every Sunday. But I didn’t know God. Christianity was just something that I accepted without ever really thinking about or entering into. I think that that all changed when I went to Christian camp and met Christians who had a real passion for God. That passion scared me and I spent the week really fighting against God inside, because I didn’t want to give myself up, and I didn’t want to look weak. I thought that I was a Christian when I went, but I realised that I didn’t know God at all. The only thing was that I was too stubborn to tell anyone, so did the "I become a Christian, please God" prayer by myself (about eight times coz I wasn’t sure that I did it right when there was no thunder-bolt-and-lightning stuff). Over the next few years my friend became very ill. It was the worst time in my life and I felt all alone in trying to save her. During these years I prayed so hard for her, but I didn’t understand what God could do. Then I went to a Youth Service where the minister said Jesus wanted to take all our burdens from us. So I gave it all up, because deep down I was too tired to fight any more, and realised that there was nothing that I could do apart from trust in God. Although this was all a long time ago I think that it marked a turning point in my life, when I stopped relying on myself and turned to Jesus. Since then I have grown so much in God. I’m so excited about what the future will bring because God has control of my life, and although I still doubt sometimes, I just remember the promises that he has made and the way I have heard his voice. I know from the CU away weekend last year that God is moving in me in the most amazing ways, and that he will let me see things that others won’t. And as I was writing this I just realised how God has changed my life around; how little by little he has been changing me, and that this is just as amazing as the ‘thunder-bolt-and-lightning’ conversion that I thought I missed out on.
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Gillian
I am not from a 'Christian' family, although my mum and dad did believe in God and the Bible. I had a morally sound childhood and adolescence; I didn't drink, smoke, do drugs or have sex. I was well-liked at school, had a wonderful family, had a flair for creative arts and achieved academically as well. (I sound like such a geek!) In fact, for a non Christian, I was a bit of a goody-goody. I went to Sunday school for a while and my mum sent me and my brother to lots of Christian clubs and youth events but for some unknown reason my parents stopped going to church when I was about twelve and I lost a lot of contact with God. My school friend Sharon brought me to some youth events that touched me but I never made a commitment. I remember trying to bargain with God ("If you sort this out for me I promise I will start going back to church") as if me going to church did God a favour! Looking back, I can see that God hadn’t given up on me and was still really working in my life.
So jumping forward a few years! God blessed me with a really happy time and no real problems. When I was 18, I moved down to St Mary’s to study Drama. It was really hard for me to be away from my family as we were/are very close. I started to get very down. I felt God speaking to me about finding a Christian man here at uni but I didn’t grab onto that the way I wish I had. Instead, I just wanted to go home. Then I got into a way of life that wasn’t good. It’s too personal to go into here, but suffice it to say that I did some stuff I’m not proud of and over a year I really really changed. I was in hospital a lot and got very depressed and took a year out of college to get better.
At the very end of that year I worked at a children’s summer camp and I met a girl from America called Emily. She was a fine example of how God’s light can shine out of someone. Not once did she tell me the gospel; it was her life. Everything about her was godly and beautiful, and I wanted what she had, but did nothing about it. Time passed and I was pretty happy. Then I was in a play at college with another Emily and she was also a Christian. Again without telling me the gospel she managed to covey God’s greatness to me and I thought, "I want her life", but still I didn’t do anything about it. Then one night I woke up at 3 in the morning and knew I needed to go to church. It was so random that I laughed out loud but a few days later I received a phone call from a great friend of mine called Bob. He told me he’d been on an Alpha course and that it was awesome. So I got in contact with local churches that ran the course, hopped on a plane back to London and went straight there! As I flew back, I knew that by the end of the course I was going to be a ‘proper’ Christian. I knew that big things were about to change in my life, and I was right. I also joined the Christian Union at this time and in August that year, I became a Christian.
I now look back over my life and I thank God for keeping me in His hands. He never let go of me, but lovingly helped me find the right path. God is a total gentleman and never barges His way into people’s lives. He just gently guides us and I believe He sends us events and people as signposts along the way. I thank God for my angels, Sharon and the two Emilys, who were such godly lights, and who helped guide me onto God’s path. Since then, God has changed my heart in so many amazing ways and continued to guide me, through my degree, into a wonderfully happy marriage and back to St Mary’s for a PGCE. Writing all this down has just emphasised to me that God is so wonderful, and it blows my mind to know that whatever I do, however rubbish I am at living the way God wants me to, He never stops loving me and never ever will. He truly is an awesome God.
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Laura Brooks
I grew up in a Christian family, where my parents took my siblings and I to church from birth. I made life-long friends at church and never wanted to give up my faith, so I never have.
As a teenager, I had low self-esteem and little self-confidence. This could have been a result of bullying or something less obvious. I never thought I was worth anything. All sorts of factors contributed to this opinion. My low grade at Art GCSE (a subject I had expected to do better in) and my English Literature AS Level failure (upsetting then as I’ve always aspired to be a writer) didn’t help matters. My sister’s success at university and my belief that my parents were more proud of her, convinced me even further that I could never reach that achievement. I’d always believed this even before my GCSE’s and so I never planned for university after college and just went straight into work.
I hated my first job and left after a year. My second job in the careers service saw improvement. I actually enjoyed it and found some job satisfaction. It was here that I did an aptitude test and while receiving the results, there was a rumble of thunder as my colleague told me that I would be good at university study. When we heard the thunder, she said “I think someone’s trying to tell you something.” Every time I think about this, I start laughing and crying because this was when my eyes opened. God works in funny ways and he knows us so completely, even how our minds work. I started thinking ‘what if it’s true? What if this is what he wants for me?’ I researched my options and meanwhile, realised that I enjoyed research and helping people (all part of my job then), and enjoyed history so it seemed obvious that I should study history. When I researched higher education, St. Mary’s was not an option I thought I would take, but it soon became appealing.
Now, when I look back, I can see how God had a plan for me all along and he put me where he wanted me at each and every time. I needed to see he had better plans for me than I had myself. I’m happy now. I know who I am and am more accepting of myself now than I was before. As a friend said recently, I have found myself. I never knew I was looking.
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