Rachel Redeemed
1. How did you become a Christian?
I have the testimony no one thinks they want to have but every Christian parent wants for their kid. I can’t remember a day when I didn’t know Jesus. I believe I got saved when my dad explained to me as a kid that going to church didn’t make me a Christian – I was shocked and wanted to have Jesus in charge of my life. I recently met a lady who had taught me the Bible in Sunday School; she had my name in a book and she had been faithfully praying for me for over 20 years. What a saint. So I guess my testimony should be: God has wonderfully saved and kept me in response to the prayers of His people.
2. What lessons have you learnt since that you would want to pass on to a younger Christian version of yourself?
That it’s okay to suffer… and that all the mature Christians we look up to have walked hard paths. Maturity as a Christian is grown in flower beds that we might not want to be planted in. My guess is that spiritual growth is 30% teaching, 70% suffering. I would like to remind myself of the promise and assurance Jesus gives – ‘I will be with you to the end of the age’. He truly will never leave me.
3. How would you describe your prayer life?
I long for my prayer life to be immovably regular and rich, but instead I often get distracted, and intoxicated by my own self-sufficiency. I have found prayer journalling quite liberating (as it doesn’t need to be intelligible to anyone other than God) and something I can do more regularly than trying to sit still and close my eyes without getting distracted.
4. Which two or three Christian books apart from the Bible have most influenced your faith?
Given Keller’s huge impact on my faith and his passing earlier this year my first nod must go to The Freedom of Self-forgetfulness by Timothy Keller. I’m so lousy at living in the freedom of not being concerned by what others think of me, even what I think of me – but only what God thinks of me. I think I’ve read this book four times… I probably need to read it again.
Second, Gentle and Lowly by Dane C. Ortland – a huge shout-out to this audiobook for being a significant help in keeping my thoughts anchored on Christ through a particularly dark time: I think I’ve listened to this over ten times.
Third – this one helps keep me sane as a Christian in the arts: Adorning the Dark by Andrew Peterson… listened to four times… you might see the theme here!
5. Who or what have been your biggest Christian influences?
A shout-out to camp leaders – you showed us how to be a Christian on fire for Jesus and how not to wear socks and sandals (until it was cool again). My parents modelled daily Bible reading, and encouraged us to pray around the dinner table every evening. A dear grandma-esque older saint who had experienced deep tragedy in her life but still resounded with the joy of the Lord. More recently, faithful artists who are navigating success with honesty and humility – some indeed who are part of Keswick Unconventional.
6. What are the main challenges you believe Christians face today?
My husband John has memorised the book of Revelation for church performances. Through studying the book together, I’ve been interested to see how if we lose the concept of judgment (from the One who is gentle and lowly), we lose the gospel. I think it’s a challenge to our generation of Christians that following Jesus isn’t just our quirky hobby; the gospel is something everyone needs to hear and receive, or they will face Him on judgment day with nowhere to hide.
7. What encourages and what discourages you?
‘Capital T’ testimonies are great, but I am so encouraged by ‘small t’ testimonies when anyone speaks honestly and openly about what God is doing and has done in their life.
I’m sometimes discouraged by how badly Christians can relate to those from a different theological stable. You can fall off either side of the horse: either arrogantly looking down on other believers, or lacking enough Biblical conviction to stand up for anything, leading to fake unity based on nothing.
8. What makes you laugh?
Marx Brothers. ‘Fools and Horses’. ‘Looney Tunes’. Stand-up Theology. Improv. My husband – a deadpan, wisecracking goofball but you’d never think it… We try to find the funny in whatever we can – this helps enormously when things are anything but funny.
9. What would you want to say to the wider evangelical world?
Whether you consider your church to be weak/snazzy/mahusive/meagre: keep holding out Christ. He really is our rescuer! Our hearts need Him proclaimed from all of Scripture, so let’s partner with the Holy Spirit to make much of Christ, outworking into how we do all of life – from litigation law to the laundry.
10. Which Biblical person (other than Jesus) do you most look forward to meeting in glory and why?
Moses. We named one of our miscarried children after him and his story is just fascinating. A complicated childhood, 40 years ‘wasted’ in the wilderness (twice!), one burning bush, ten plagues, and, 12 tribes later… he played such a pivotal role in the unfolding drama of God’s redemption plan! Wowzers!! Tell me all about it, bro!
