Helping Others Through God’s Love: Alison Yu’s Story

Born and raised in China, Alison Yu came to know God in college through campus ministry at Fudan University in Shanghai.

Her experiences during that time solidified her faith and instilled in her a desire to know Him more.

After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in economics, she furthered her relationship with God — and shared his Word with others — as a full-time staff member for that same campus ministry.

During this time, Alison had the opportunity to take a few courses taught by Trinity International University (TIU) faculty through a ministry called Timothy Training International (TTI). The organization’s mission is to deliver “readily accessible and deeply engaging Bible-based learning that fosters Christ-centered personal living and church-directed spiritual ministry to Chinese church pastors and leaders.”

“The professors’ teaching opened my eyes to such a rich and beautiful world in the Word, and I wanted to take more classes with them,” Alison says.

So, she enrolled in Trinity Evangelical Divinity School’s (TEDS) Master of Divinity (MDiv) program and moved to the United States.

She chose to pursue an MDiv as a direct result of the Bible courses she took through TTI in China.

“I wanted to learn more about the Bible and maybe become a Bible teacher,” she says.

But during her first year in the MDiv program, Alison realized she knew very little about herself after taking psychological tests and counseling sessions.

“My interest in learning more about myself and other people increased significantly,” she says. “Therefore, after completing my MDiv degree, I started my mental health counseling studies at TEDS.”

Today, Alison combines both her degrees to provide quality care to her patients at Illinois-based Cherry Hill Counseling, where she started as a licensed mental health therapist after graduating in 2020.

With a deep understanding of both first generations and second generations of immigrant families, Alison has a special passion for helping these individuals navigate their intergenerational differences in order to create mutual understanding. She is also well-equipped to provide service from a faith perspective.

“I love people’s stories and walking with them in their healing journey,” she says. “With my Christian clients, I also use the word of God to guide their growth.”

Alison is able to do so because of her rich experience as a student in TEDS.

“Knowing more about God and people would be the theme of my time at Trinity,” she says. “There, I got to know more about myself, including my brokenness and wounds, my passion and my professional calling. God has guided me through knowledge of God (theology) and knowledge of human beings (psychology).”