Meet Judith Nicholls

I can't believe it's almost August and we are about to start our third book! In August, we'll be reading Faithful Women and Their Extraordinary God, a collection of 5 short biographies about 5 very different Christian women. Our contributor for this book is Judith Nicholls. I thought I'd do the same thing I did with Lee and Carmelina and do a short 'interview' with Judith before we start next week...

How did you come to faith in Christ?

I came to faith in Christ as a result of a Scripture class in high school. Amidst the flying orange peel and the rude jokes from the boys I heard the minister say that if the Lord called us to follow him not to resist. So one night while I was doing my homework I told the Lord that if he was calling me I would follow him. My understanding was imperfect and I doubt that the minister who gave the Scripture lesson and was somewhat unusual would make it through a selection panel now, but he was a great prayer warrior and I have no doubt he prayed fervently for that unruly class. Subsequently a Christian girl in my class told me that I needed to make a public profession of my faith. I think she had doubts as to its reality. So I went off to the Billy Graham Crusade with the express purpose of making a public profession. What it meant to follow Jesus hit me with all its enormity and I was turned inside out, demanding that God should answer all my questions. God in his mercy provided me with wonderful mentors and teachers to bring me through that turbulent time. Ephesians 2:9-10 was the key verse for me.

What do you most love about reading?

When I read I can reflect on what is being said. For me reading a novel is a great way to absorb knowledge and process it. I don’t usually like to see films of novels as they spoil my imagined world. I also read to escape. A story that has entered our family annals occurred when my youngest son asked me a question while I was reading a book and I replied, “Look it up in the microwave.”

What is your favourite novel?

I change my favourite novel every few years. I was entranced by The Lord of the Rings, the first time I read it. I like all of Jane Austen’s novels and Patrick O’Brien’s sea-faring novels. Solzhenitsyn’s The First Circle is a great novel. I also like children’s books as they are often better written than adult books. I loved rereading Rosemary Sutcliffe’s to my own children

What book has helped you the most in growing in your knowledge of God?

Lots. James Packer’s God Has Spoken, C S Lewis Screwtape Letters, Martin Luther’s The Bondage of the Will. I don’t read a lot of “popular” Christian books as they irritate me – that’s my problem not theirs.