We have been so encouraged to heart the stories of both current and former interns alike, and this week is no exception! This week, I have asked former VOH intern, Hannah, to share how God worked in her life personally, and what He has been leading her to do since she finished her internship.
Hannah came to us from Warsaw, Indiana in July, 2012. She attended Word of Life Bible Institute and Moody Bible Institute prior to serving with us. Please welcome Hannah, as she shares her story of God’s awesome plan!
“After Bible school I had a desire to take the knowledge I had attained of God’s Word and learn more about how to apply it to ladies’ lives in very practical ways. As I researched ministries online, I came across the Vision of Hope website. I watched short videos of graduate’s testimonies that described how God’s word had helped them at Vision of Hope. I also read the internship description, which asked if you have a heart to help hurting women. Soon after becoming interested, I learned that Vision of Hope was a ministry of Faith Church, the church some friends of mine attended. I asked them about Vision of Hope, and they encouraged me to apply after saying many good things about the ministry.
One of the biggest ways I grew during my time at Vision of Hope was to put off a judgmental, legalistic mentality and put on Biblical love for effective ministry. Before Vision of Hope, I was blind to the fact that many times in ministry opportunities I naturally assumed the worst or, in other words, tended on the side of being very judgmental. Through my time as an intern, I was taught the biblical truth from 1 Corinthians 13, that love assumes the best. In assuming the best, I need to take time and effort to ask good questions in order to understand a matter. A verse that has greatly impacted me in this growth is Proverbs 18:13 which says, “He who gives an answer before he hears, it is folly and shame to him.” Through observing counseling sessions, reading counseling books from Faith’s resource center, attending the annual conference and the eleven week counseling training course, I grew in the skill of how to ask good questions; in doing so, this has helped grow me in a gracious love as I assume the best rather than the worst.
Since I finished the internship in the summer of 2013, I have roomed with two wonderful ladies who were also interns with me. We remained in Lafayette just a few minutes from VOH to continue growing spiritually, serving, and gaining in counseling skills. God provided an job opportunity through a friend’s reference to work at Faith West’s preschool. I began as an aid, and then began teaching. My first year, I taught early three’s and now I teach K3. I have also enjoyed becoming a part of the Purdue Bible Fellowship for International students. Towards the end of summer I began praying for direction to what ministry I should commit myself for the coming year. The Lord led me to this ministry, and I absolutely love it! The international students are not only friendly and fun, but they have such a thirst to learn about God and His Word. On Friday nights we meet for a time of worship, small group studies, and hang out. On Monday nights, I am a part of a ladies bible study. On Sunday mornings, I help teach the Bible with their one-on-one ministry in which a Christian teaches an international student about the Bible. These students are those who want to learn but have a hard time learning from the main bible study group due to their English skills or being new to the Bible. It has been a joyful growing experience to use God’s word to answer students’ questions such as: “How do you know there is a God?” or “Why do I need a relationship with God”” or “How is God fair when He sends ‘good’ people to hell?” Studying God’s word to answer these questions has been very challenging, but beneficial in my walk with God, and I am so thankful for the privilege of working with this ministry. “
Thank you so much for sharing, Hannah! We are thrilled to see how God has continued to use you in some awesome ministries, and cannot wait to see how God will use you next.
