I think one of the biggest things that I've learned about sharing my faith is that, it's not gonna be the same for everyone
My name is Beth, and this is my story
So, when I was a teenager my brother was murdered, and my dad had a stroke when I was 17
As a teenager I didn't react well to the things that happened
I got very angry at the world, and basically anyone I could be angry at
So, I didn't want to explore faith at first, but the thing that led me to do so was when I came to university
It was during Freshers' Week and it was a great week, but it just felt like I wanted more
Two of my flatmates who were Christians said, "why don't we do this thing called Text"
A
Toastie
Which is where you text the Christian Union a question, and then they come and answer it with your dinner
So we text this random question, and they turned up at about 8 o'clock, and stayed til half 12, answering all the questions that I didn't know that I had
They really helped me in many ways, when I was very adamant that they weren't going to
On the Friday night, I went along to 'Unite', the Christian Union's weekly, kind of celebration meeting thing
And they all just stood up and started singing when we got there, and I just found that slightly weird
What is going on
Why has life turned into a musical all of a sudden
Why does everyone know the words and I don't"
I was a bit overwhelmed, I think, and I didn't want to be a Christian, but I kind of knew that something was happening, and something was changing in the way that I was thinking about things"
A few weeks after that, I met up with my hall group leader, and she bought me an ice cream, and she sat me down, and she was like, "So, what are your questions
And I was like, "I don't want to talk to you
And then, she basically told me about Jesus, and people had done that, but I hadn't really listened, and then I went back to the weekly meeting, 'Unite'
Everyone stood up and started singing again, and I thought, I'm gonna join in
And I was thinking things through, and I decided that I wanted to be a Christian
So, I became a Christian, in that song
The way I understand suffering is very different now that I'm a Christian, to the way I understood it before I was a Christian
When I became a Christian I asked a lot of questions
I read through the Bible cover to cover, and found a God in the pages there that didn't cause pain, but that did redeem pain
So he promises that one day all pain will be made right, and that there will be justice, and those things were just so important to me
I think for anyone going to uni, I'd encourage them with one thing, ask every question you have and don't be afraid to ask them
Because there are answers, and it's gonna be the easiest time in your life, when people are the most open to answering your questions, to do so
