Sister Yang, who taks charge of a fellowship of a church in Changchun City and shepherding near 20 new believers in her early 20s, accepted the request for interview and began to talk about her faith story.
Yang has been attending church activities with her mother since her childhood. But at that time she did not know why. She only knew that her mother must take her to church every Sunday.
But God told her that He is a real and alive through healing her sore throat. The experience touched her and made her believe that there is a great God.
Yang’s life of faith was growing gradually in days as a college student. But she still could not understand God’s love and Christ’s salvation. And she thought these were not concerned in her life. What's more, worship and the Bible were two incomprehensible areas in Yang’s belief. Afterwards, Yang attended the University's fellowship. Reading,praying,and hearing, those activities she did in the fellowship were a great help to the growth of her life in faith. A year’s practice of faith, she gradually became a disciple of one of the believers. But Yang still constantly chased God’s words. She prayed constantly, asking God to help her find release and freedom in the truth of God’s words. By mean of her continuous prayers, she knew that if she confessed her sins and accepted God’s salvation, she can receive real freedom.
“After graduation, compared to heavy work, I preferred the activities of the church,”Yang said. So she prayed to God so that she could resign from her job. And surprisingly, God answered her prayer. From that moment on, she began to have full trust in God.
But in Yang’s heart, church still is a place for escaping. The Bible tells us that we should set our minds on things above, not on earthly things. Acts deeply touched Yang and the Holy Spirit also touched Yang. “Lord, you said you are the way and the truth and the life. And I can do everything through you,” Yang prayed through her tears. After a night of praying, Yang decided to be a full time shepherd.
“In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps.” “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.” Those two scriptures are the real voices of her heart.
When we talked about God’s works in her life, Yang answered with happiness, “The Lord’s love is so real that I could not find any reason to distrust his love that he has died for me. So I am really a man who has been in debt. I owed God’s love a debt that I need to devote my whole life to pay back.”
Translated By: Sun Guorui
