It All Started with a Dream...

It all started from what was 'girl's gist'. Anyone who knows me knows I like gist lol... Actually let me rephrase that before I get into trouble, I like stories! I love stories... I love reading them and I absolutely love hearing them. My friends are tired of me lol. I love hearing real stories, It's fascinating for me hearing people's stories. I believe everyone has a unique story and I enjoy finding them out! :-D Oh did I also say that I love asking questions too?! Oh I do! I should work for the FBI/CIA/SSS!! (Referrals welcome! :-D)

Anyways, I digress... So my friends and I were gisting when Yetunde aka Yettisho somehow started talking about how her life changed.. Simply put, I was drawn in, I realised we shared some similarities and I just had to ask if she would be willing to share on 1 + The One. As the fantastic person that she is, she obliged and here we are... I hope you are blessed (as I was) by reading.. Enjoy!

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YettiSho

I was 19 in my second year of University and I felt inadequate, my self –esteem hadn’t risen much from my early teenage years. I had decided to stop raving (aka partying, clubbing) as it wasn’t bringing me a boyfriend, every rave was the same and I felt empty. My best friend at University was the most dedicated Christian I had ever met, we had both decided to stop raving to focus on our respective faiths. We were very close course mates, work mates and flatmates but she was Christian and I was Muslim. 

It was never an issue, sure we debated but we were respectful enough that we never crossed lines and it never affected our friendship. I was a very confident Muslim, was adamant that there was nothing I would want more than to die as one going to paradise. I would speak with soo much passion and conviction that, those in limbo with their faith couldn’t help but give Islam a second thought. That all changed in one night. It was the month of Ramadan and I was feeling extra spiritual. I was at University and I had an early night. 

 I found myself in a waiting room alongside my best friend and two of my friends. I was soo scared!! I looked around at my friends and they were soo calm and I was the only one shaking and frantically worrying about my mother as we were waiting for the roller coaster to take us to the place we were to be judged. I woke up full of fear and not wanting to go back into the nightmare. I knocked on my friends door scared to sleep, telling her the dream I had, completely baffled that my subconscious wasn’t as confident as my conscious self. I told my mum about the dream, she brushed it away telling me not to worry that she has dreams like that all the time. So I pushed it to the back of my mind, shuddering at the thought. After having religious based conversations with friends I began to question things about my Islamic faith that I had never considered, why wasn’t the signs to watch out for in the last days in the Qur’an like it was in Revelations? Why couldn’t I pray to God whilst on my period what if I really needed him? Why did I have to learn another language to speak to God – after all he’s Omniscient?!

I questioned these silently and would pore over my Qur’an trying to find the answers. Me and two friends were up late at night talking about dreams, the conversation switched when my friend turned to me and said “You never talk about that dream that you had”. I was taken by surprise and lost composure asking why she would bring it up knowing how it made me feel. She pushed and told me that she felt the dream was significant and that I should come to her church, no obligation but she felt if I got nothing from it at least I would enjoy the music and would never have to go back if I didn’t like it. 

For me, I had been to many churches, going to faith based primary and secondary schools, having Christian friends and members of my extended family so it wasn’t new to me. In fact I would leave the church programs determined to be a better Muslim! The next day was Sunday, and when I woke up I suddenly felt apprehensive and regretted agreeing to go to church. I told my friend who reassured me again that I’d be fine. I went back to my room and said to God, “I’m going to this place today, whatever you want to show me I pray you show it to me”. 

I had never prayed like that before. When we got outside the church I felt like I couldn’t go in, and suddenly felt emotional and overwhelmed. So I got myself together, slightly embarrassed I entered. The praise and worship songs were familiar from my days at school, I closed my eyes and tried to hold back the tears that were fighting through. When the praise and worship ended, I quickly wiped away the tears hoping no one had seen. Before the service closed there was an altar call, “Of course you’re not going to get up” “Why would you even think of getting up”’ this was the argument I was having with myself. 

When the service closed I stood up pictured myself running out of there, but my legs didn’t cooperate with my brain. I stood there rooted, and I finally broke down. I lost all composure and cried like my heart was broken. No one came to me, not even my friend I came with, they allowed me to cry. I then felt a hand on my shoulder and lifted my head up, it was the Pastor of the church. “Why are you crying?” She asked me, “I’m just soo scared” I said. She then held my hands and prayed “Jesus, bring peace into this girls heart”, as if by magic the tears stopped! I tried to cry but they wouldn’t come, the confusion and fear I felt also stopped. She continued “Do you accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour?”, in my head I shouted “No Way” but as I opened my mouth I said “Yes”. 

She kept speaking and my mouth kept agreeing, till she hugged me and said welcome to the family. I had another friend who had told me she had something to give me before I even accepted the invitation to the church, when she gave me the gift it was a New Believers' Bible ((it was surreal!). They all celebrated with me and I smiled, but I felt sick to my stomach shocked at what had happened and frightened at how I would tell my parents. When I got back to halls at Uni, I called my mum and told her through tears how I had become a Christian, how she doesn’t know how hard it had been for me as I had been soo miserable and stressed. My ramblings frightened her so she told me to speak to my uncle who had converted in his 20s too and was now a Pastor. 

I called him and told him what happened and told him I felt like I was going crazy, he was ecstatic told me they had been praying and that I’m not going crazy because he too had a similar experience. I came off the call relieved and started looking into my New Believers Bible, 'Share your new found faith in Christ to make it real' was the first chapter. So I did just that, I sent my friends a mass text that I had accepted Jesus Christ as my Lord and saviour and I was no longer a Muslim. Many called me as they felt it was a prank, but joy and peace like I had never felt washed over me each time I retold the story as it began to get more and more real. 

My parents were adamant that it was a phase and influence from friends, so much so they ambushed me with senior leaders from the mosque I grew up in. Almost a year into my new faith they turned up unannounced at our home on a Sunday, my mother telling me she didn’t know why they were there after I asked her. They called me into the living room, my stomach churned as I asked God silently to give me the words to say. They said they heard about my issue and wanted to help me resolve it, I looked at myself thinking 'was I sick?' 

I asked what issue they were talking about; they proceeded to tell me that they heard that I had been influenced to become Christian. I told them what happened, about the dream and my experience in the church and they dismissed it as pure hallucinations and lack of knowledge on my part. My Father chimed in “Don’t mind her she’s on holiday”. At that point I turned to my mother like a child “You lied! You said you didn’t know why they were here!”. At that point they all descended on me and told me not to speak to my mother like that, through the chaos I had created I put up my hand and said, “If you believe in the God that you serve, pray to him to change me and he will change me you don’t have to do this” At that point they looked at me and each other agreeing that I had spoken wisely, I praised God as I left their midst to get ready for church breathing a sigh of relief knowing that I had truly found my home in Jesus.

This was 10years ago. I'm still in the faith and God has continued to carry me from strength to strength, pushing my faith further and validating my decision. I look at the person I was before, full of fear and doubt, there were times in my life when I felt alone; knowing Christ has allowed me to experience that even in the loneliest times of my life, I'm never alone. Even when I make the wrong decisions, I always have Him to lead. I'm bolder and I have a peace that I could have never imagined. It's the best decision I ever made.

You can watch Yetunde's Vlogs on Youtube - YetundeVlogs

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Were you blessed by Yetty's personal experience? Do you also have, or feel a void deep inside and you yearn for more? Would you like to also have this wonderful encounter and relationship too? Just say this simple prayer with me - 

"Jesus, thank You for dying for my sins on the cross. I appreciate and acknowledge your sacrifice. I want to invite you into my life today, come and fill this void Jesus, I believe in my heart that You are Lord and I want You to be my Lord. Please forgive me for my sins and make me brand new today in Jesus name. Thank You for a new start Lord, I give You praise. Amen"

Wow! Congratulations, your life just became amazing! Welcome to a new life, a new relationship :-) xxxx

Ps If you prayed that prayer or want to know a bit more about all that has been said above, please send me an email at 1plustheone@gmail.com. I would love to hear from you!

Also, if you would like to share your own experience too, please send me an email.

You can read other real stories HERE

Have a wonderful weekend people! Lots of loveeee xxxxx

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