Ines is a student in Nottingham and this is her story of finding a Church and growing in faith whilst at Uni...
Jesus has been in my life as long as I can remember as I was brought up in a Christian home. I grew up going to Church every Sunday and attending Sunday school. So, I can definitely say Christ has always been in my life however I have not always been in His. My life with Christ was always one foot in and the other one out. I would always go to church on a Sunday, praise and worship God but then during the week, I was not living a life like Christ. I would live my life and try to fit in with the crowd. I found myself always looking and seeking for validation and acceptance from other people.
However, it was when I moved to University my personal journey with Jesus really started. I made it one of my goals to properly form a relationship with him and not just call upon him when I was in trouble. I created a wallpaper on my laptop with pictures of my goals when I started University and one of those was to get closer to God. I wasn’t reading the Bible that often so didn’t have a particular verse which was close to my heart, so I googled ‘Bible Scripture’ and picked one. It didn’t mean much to me, but I liked how it sounded so I put it on my wallpaper.
I remember one day just grabbing my Bible and not knowing where to start, so I prayed for God’s guidance. Then I just flipped through the pages and stopped when I felt prompted. The verse I stopped on was Proverbs 3:5-6: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding but acknowledge him, and he will direct your paths.” When reading that I felt really seen by God and this motivated me to not continue walking down my own path but his. I decided I needed to find a church, and so I googled churches in Nottingham and found Trent Vineyard. I then attended the evening service that day after which the Student Pizza Night was also happening – which was a massive benefit for me as a student!
Coming to church that day was really what got the ball rolling for me; I felt peace and warmth, like God was happy to see me back home. After attending a few services, I kept hearing about Small Groups during the announcements, so I decided to join a Student one. I can honestly say that it gave me guidance on how I could build an even stronger relationship with God as I learned how to fast, about the gift of prophecy, as well as other ways I can serve God!
This made me to want to serve on the Kids' team which I have enjoyed every moment of! During Small Group we also did prayer sessions and one night I shared how I was going through a challenging time. Everyone gathered around me to pray and I can say that I have seen God deliver me in a mighty way since that night. I have come to learn that His grace can handle all of me. And each day God continues to shape my heart as I experience and understand more deeply of His approval and unchanging love for me in Christ.
A couple of months later as I had started reading the Bible more often, I went back to my laptop wallpaper to read the Bible verse I randomly chose when I began University. It turns out the verse on my screen was Proverbs 3:5-6, the same verse God first led me to! I could not stop crying that night because God had shown me how he is the Alpha and Omega; he has been there in all aspects of my life even when I did not know it. This was why I decided to get baptised and become a part of his family; Jesus has always been in my life but now I am in His and part of His family.
