Fiona Johnson is a student at Nottingham University. She became a committed Christian nearly three years ago; she one-to-oned with an older Christian last year, and has just started to read the Bible with Jamie, a friend of hers who isn't a Christian. Other than knowing Christ, she likes family, friends and cooking.
How did one-to-oneing with an older Christian help you in your faith?
It encouraged me to ask questions and look for answers. I realized that the whole Bible all revolved around Jesus. Bible stories I'd known my whole life suddenly had relevance and the connections led me to understand who Jesus was/is, and what that means for my life.
How did it help you to read and understand the Bible?
The Bible went from being something that was for church and didn't really need to be read, to something that has become part of my everyday life. It made the Bible much more accessible and relevant to me.
How did you get into doing a one-to-one with someone who is interested in Christianity?
We met in Freshers' week at university and just started chatting about Christianity, within a few weeks my friend had a bible and it just went from there.
How did you find doing it with no prior experience?
It seemed pretty natural. I used some Bible study notes, and prayed and went through the studies beforehand. Knowing that God was behind me meant that I didn't have to worry about what she would ask or if I was confused by something. I could just ask someone else who knows a bit more than me, and come back to her.
What's good about one-to-oneing like this?
It's beyond exciting when you can see directly how God is working in somebody else's life.
How has doing it encouraged and helped your own faith?
Some of the questions that came up throughout the studies were challenging, as they made me think about the basics of Christianity and remember that they’re so much more important than the more complicated issues which periodically cloud my view of who Jesus is. Being able to stand up for God reminds me how much I believe who He is and what is really important to me.
For a short introduction to what one-to-oneing is, just click here.
Carl is Publisher and Co-CEO at The Good Book Company and is a member of Life Church Hackbridge in south London. He is the bestselling author of The Garden, the Curtain and the Cross and God's Big Promises Bible Storybook, and also serves as Series Editor of the God's Word For You series. Before joining TGBC, he worked as a journalist and then as a teacher, and pastored a congregation in Hull. Carl is married to Lizzie, and they have two children. He studied history at Oxford University.
