Jonny Raine
1. How did you become a Christian?
My parents shared the message of Jesus with me from my earliest years. I distinctly remember, around five years of age, asking my dad how you become a Christian. He said to pray and say sorry for what we’ve done wrong, to ask for forgiveness, and to give your life to Jesus. We were at the dining table, so I went underneath the table and prayed straight away!
2. What lessons have you learnt since that you would want to pass on to a younger Christian version of yourself?
Pursue humility and wisdom, and don’t expect those things to come easily or quickly. They come through challenges and take a lifetime, as I’m still discovering.
3. How would you describe your prayer life?
Most of my praying is either spontaneously throughout the day as people and needs come to mind, or at times of prayer with other people. I pray with my wife almost every night before bed. In all honesty, I struggle to pray on my own for extended periods.
4. Which two or three Christian books apart from the Bible have most influenced your faith?
Knowing God by J.I. Packer encouraged in me a real sense of awe and intimacy towards God. In my teens, Josh McDowell’s Evidence that Demands a Verdict was the first book to help me to see how our faith can be reasonably defended. The Pastor by Eugene Peterson is simply a phenomenal book of Peterson’s memories.
5. Who or what have been your biggest Christian influences?
As well as my parents, there have been so many people who have had a positive influence in my Christian life – youth leaders, pastors, older and wiser Christians, church staff, Bible college lecturers – far too many to name, and most of whom are relatively unknown. I’m thankful to God to have received such positive influences from countless godly people.
6. What are the main challenges you believe Christians face today?
The increasing marginalisation of Christians and our convictions is something we’re still coming to terms with. As churches, I wonder if we’re going to have to learn to live with less resources, both in terms of finance and people. I wonder if we need collective thinking about being more strategic and mutually supportive, as bigger churches and smaller churches, and churches in richer areas and poorer areas.
7. What encourages and what discourages you?
I find the greatest encouragement to be when God’s word takes effect in people’s lives – when a non-Christian grasps the message of Jesus and turns to Him, or when a Christian makes a step forward in their faith having absorbed some truth from God’s word. The greatest discouragement is the very opposite – when non-Christians are hardened to the message or when we (myself too often included) as Christians fail to live in ways that God’s word calls us to.
8. What makes you laugh?
Good banter with my family – I have to laugh at my ‘dad jokes’ because no one else will! I’ve also got a group of very good friends who are also in ministry. We meet up a few times a year and we always have a good laugh together – often laughing at each other!
9. What would you want to say to the wider evangelical world?
Though our various evangelical tribes exist for reasons, we need each other and we need to learn from each other. The gospel is much bigger than any one of us.
10. Which Biblical person (other than Jesus) do you most look forward to meeting in glory and why?
Probably Ezekiel. He seems pretty weird and likely has some stories to tell! Or maybe John, because he thinks deep thoughts.
