STORIES OF CHANGE
My Life With God
Added: Friday 28th October 2011My name is Ayako; I am from Japan. This is my testimony of meeting God through my university life.
About five years ago in 2006, I came to NZ to study English and search for my dream. When I was 18 years old, I had lost my dream to be a guide dog trainer. I got the job but realized that the work was not for me. I gave up my dream because of my weakness and low self-confidence, and was not able to see hope for my future when I worked as a dog trainer. After leaving the job, I lost my motivation to search for a new dream and a new goal. I did not know what I wanted to do next, as my only aim had been to be a guide dog trainer. When I was having this trouble, my neighbour suggested I go to New Zealand to gain new experience.
I was interested in learning English and thought it was cool to speak English, so I chose to come to NZ. I went to language school in Christchurch for a year, and then got the idea of going to university to obtain new knowledge. This was because I met a German girl who was a university student, and was amazed at her confidence from knowing many things. I started thinking that I should study more to gain self-confidence. I did not know at that time how this decision would change my life.
I took a foundation course at Lincoln University, and then in July 2008 began a BSc in Food Science. However, once my university life began, I was depressed that I could not understand the lectures because of my poor English. I felt sad and low in confidence; but I felt that this was a decision I couldn’t give up. I was trying to overcome this hard time by myself.
Picture: Ayako with Lincoln International Christian Fellowship
During this time, I shared the issue with the one of my flatmates. She was an international student and a Christian. I found that she was easy to talk to because of her strength and kindness.
To be honest, I was an anti-Christian; I did not have a good impression of Christians, and felt scared of them. My experience of some Japanese Christians was that they use speaker sets on their cars to spread scary stories, or they come to each house to talk about who they are and what they believe. I thought: ‘Why do they not leave people alone? It is individual choice. If people are interested in becoming a Christian, they will seek.’ My flatmate never pushed me to be a Christian. Because of that I was able to talk to her with no fear. When I was talking with her about my study issues, she shared her life experience. Through her words, I saw her appreciation of God. I told her I felt scared to fail my subjects. At that time, I was filled with anxiety and cried a lot but I felt peace when my flatmate prayed for my study. I remember my mind became light, and my energy was restored. It became my habit to talk to her and seek advice from her.
My unfavourable impression of Christians changed day by day throughout my first semester. I started to search for God, and began to go to church and International Christian Fellowship (ICF), and studied the Bible with a lifegroup. This is my story, the beginning of my journey with God.
In 2011 July, it is God’s blessing that I completed my study. When I reflect on my university life, God guided me in many ways. When I faced difficulties, I was struggling to keep my faith up, especially when the massive earthquakes hit Christchurch and Japan. God really gave me His strength during my last semester. I remember that ICF, my church friends, Bible study group members and lifegroup supported me during that time. God has changed my life completely. I have hope for my life now, because Jesus holds my future.
Ayako Yamamoto, LICF student
