I personally find my most significant encounters with God happen through moments

My Bible: reasons to believe in the power of the Bible

'I personally find my most significant encounters with God happen through moments when I’m studying the Bible.

In my late teens, I went through Ephesians and it had a major impact on me. I got a fresh experience of God’s love for me and how much Jesus loves the church. It moved me to tears, which is unusual. It stopped me in my tracks.

I also love the great outdoors. I recently built a treetop platform so I can climb up, get away from it all and read the Bible. And when I go mountain climbing, I take my Bible with me.

Weather permitting, I read a bit on the summit – like Psalm 121: ‘I lift up my eyes to the hills. Where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD’. The Bible is also a resource for those tough seasons of life.

My father died last year, which was huge. I went through various emotions with it and wondered if I had the strength to carry on when I didn’t feel like being in front of people. But I kept repeating 2 Timothy 2.1 where Paul says, ‘But you my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus’.

I felt like that was my heavenly father giving me something to hold onto when I would have fallen on my face otherwise. Our world has been shaped by the power of this text. And that’s not just historically true, it’s still a best seller.

Even if you don’t believe, that’s a good enough reason to check out the Bible. It’s a starting point for understanding the world. I remember a friend at university who became a Christian. He was keen to get into the Bible. But when he first tried, he said it was like being asked to eat an elephant. You don’t know where to start. I developed The Bible Course to help people engage with the Bible.'

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