Making the Word accessible for everyone.
We sat down with Dorna, a Bible sharer in Cambridge, to chat about her experience of using The Word One to One to introduce others to Jesus in His Word, and how she’s used the notes as a discipleship tool in her church’s youth group.
Q. Thanks for joining us, Dorna! Could you tell us a little bit about yourself?
I’m Dorna, and I’m originally from Iran – I moved to the UK 13 years ago. I come from a Muslim family, with my mum being the first Christian in my family – I became a Christian when I was 17, thanks to my mum’s witness, a few Christian friends I had and a summer camp I went to.
The reason I became a Christian was because I became convinced about the reliability of the Bible and that, because it is the Word of God, it has to be 100% true! I first accepted this in my mind, but it took a while for God to soften my heart to accept it personally for myself. God’s grace has been really awesome to experience!
“The reason I became a Christian was because I became convinced about the reliability of the Bible and that, because it is the Word of God, it has to be 100% true!”
I went to university in London to study neuroscience and graduated last year, and now I’m a ministry trainee at Christ Church Cambridge.
Q. Who have you been reading God’s Word with recently, and how did you begin sharing with them?
It was a little difficult striking up the courage to ask – I wasn’t sure what they were going to say, since it was still lockdown and people are so busy at the moment. But I was actually really encouraged by the people at my church: they were praying for me and kept checking in on me to see if I had asked my first person to read with me!
“I was actually really encouraged by the people at my church: they were praying for me and kept checking in on me to see if I had asked my first person to read with me!”
I’m reading The Word One to One with a few people from our church’s youth group. They’re in their final year at school and about to head off to university, and I remembered that sort of time being a really important one in my own life – so I thought it would be a great time to explore John’s gospel with each of them.
When I asked them if they’d like to read with me, they were totally fine with it which was great! With A Levels being so time-intensive, I read with them once a fortnight, and it’s been so encouraging.
Q. How have you seen God work in reading His Word with others?
A few weeks ago, we were reading the part in John’s gospel about the Passover, and one of the members of the group I’m reading with suddenly asked about what was so special about the Passover. Because The Word One to One provides really helpful context for the passages, this helped them form a question which most teenagers probably wouldn’t come up with themselves! The notes raise your curiosity about who Jesus is, and that makes people ask a lot of questions that they might not normally ask.
“The notes raise your curiosity about who Jesus is, and that makes people ask a lot of questions that they might not normally ask.”
One other thing I’ve noticed is that The Word One to One does a great job at explaining the cultural context, which is important for understanding the passages better and applying it to their own lives. To see that happen naturally as I’ve read with others has been so encouraging! Even in normal Bible studies, sometimes you have to push people and yourself to go from the passage to application, but with The Word One to One, the flow helps that happen really naturally.
It also helps to bring the characters in the gospel to life – the character profiles help the personalities in the text to pop out, and it really does feel like people are meeting these Biblical characters for themselves!
Q. How has The Word One to One helped you introduce others to Jesus in His Word?
The way that The Word One to One is written is really accessible. Even though it’s designed for sharing one-to-one, it actually allows the person you’re reading with to initiate and lead the session themselves! And even if they go away and read it by themselves, it’s so easy to use and understand no matter how much experience they’ve had with the Bible and Christianity.
In the past, I’ve read it with international students, and I found that, even when they had no background in Christianity, they got it! They weren’t confused and their answers were always along the right lines.
In terms of people I have read with, some have been mature Christians, some new Christians, and many non-Christians – so I’ve been able to share God’s Word with people from different stages in their journey of faith! Having such a diversity of experiences and understanding really helps the conversation flow, since everyone brings different questions and ideas to the table. The Word One to One’s accessibility really helps that happen.
“In the past, I’ve read it with international students, and I found that, even when they had no background in Christianity, they got it! They weren’t confused and their answers were always along the right lines.”
It’s also so well structured, which helps you become really familiar with John’s gospel and increases your confidence in sharing it with others and seeing its power at work.
Q. Do you have any advice you would give to someone who’s thinking about reading the Bible with someone else?
I think the first thing is to recognise that everyone feels a bit nervous before their first session! I used to think that everyone else who used The Word One to One was so brave and that no one else felt the kind of nervousness I was feeling! But actually, we are all in the same boat, and it’s God who gives us the courage to ask people and to read with them.
“We are all in the same boat, and it’s God who gives us the courage to ask people and to read with them.”
Also, just be brave and go for it! All the resources are there, they’re so rich and give you everything you need, which means you don’t need to prepare very much before the sessions. Make sure you pray and get others around you to pray for you and encourage you as you step out and do it!
Q. How is The Word One to One being used more widely in your church?
The church leadership actually recommended The Word One to One to me, and they’re always suggesting it to people to help them share the gospel. I remember when my mum was wanting to read the Bible with international students, my pastor gave her the notes to help her get going. So yeah, The Word One to One is definitely their first suggestion to people wanting to read with others.
A lot of people in my church are involved in international ministry to the many students who come from all over the world to study in Cambridge, so they use The Word One to One to help introduce these students to Jesus. And I’ve also heard people in the university’s CU use it with their friends.
It’s definitely helped people introduce their friends and colleagues to Jesus, but it’s also been a really effective tool for supporting new Christians or those exploring faith by attending church in their discipleship. A lot of people have asked the church leadership team about how to start reading the Bible, and we always point them towards The Word One to One!
Find out more about how to invite someone to read the Bible with you.
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