Hannah Donato is a missionary with GBU / IFES / InterVarsity in Italy passionately serving her organisation and local church.
When did you trust Christ?
Although I have always gone to church since birth, it wasn't until the age of 11 at a youth camp that I spoke to God about trusting Him for my salvation—it was during a difficult time in my life. At camp, the Holy Spirit convicted me of my own sin. I asked God to forgive me for my sinful nature and behaviour, and accepted and trusted in what Jesus had done to save me. It was such a special moment, realising that I was now a child of God, forgiven and accepted by Him.
What have been the defining moments of your Christian walk?
In my early life, I realised I had been living a lukewarm and double life as a Christian, and God helped me to stop some bad habits I had adopted. Later involvement in church and Christian Unions during my university years shaped me massively in both my understanding of Scripture and living it out. It was also during this time that I felt the call to overseas mission. Now in Italy, I find great joy in seeing the people that God put in my life to disciple and train grow. Recently, I have lost both my parents. However, seeing the Lord bring my father back to faith in Him at the end encouraged me to trust in God's sovereignty and how He hears us. Through my mother's life, I was reminded that our ultimate goal as Christians is not what we do, but who we are, being transformed into the image of God.
What do you hope to gain from participating?
I look forward to learning from others and helping others learn. The Forum for me has been a source of further training and spiritual development for myself as well as being a place where I can serve and help others grow. This last year, I have been leading a year-round mentoring programme for women in Christian Leadership and I am looking forward to meeting the group again during our pre-forum sessions.
What is your ministry?
I am involved in two main ministries, local church and university campus ministry. I am involved in teaching in the women's and children ministries at our local church as well as leading the worship. With the student ministry GBU / IFES / InterVarsity, I am responsible for the training and supervision of our staff training programme which looks to train staff by providing theological training, mentoring, and on-the-job ministry training. Another small part of what I am involved in is a retreat for women involved in Christian ministry in Italy. It has been an encouragement, a time of deepened fellowship, rest, restoration, and refocusing.
What is your leadership role or what were your past leadership roles?
In the past, I was responsible for the training and care of student leaders across Italy. This involved being the Director of one of our national conferences, leading a team of staff, and creating training materials.
Why should someone invest in your ministry?
Helping me to get extra training and input is helping me to persevere and grow in my own faith and in my ministry. In my role, I have the opportunity to disciple and train the younger generation of Christian leaders in Italy which will, by God's grace, have an impact upon the Italian church as a whole.
