Rachel M.

Rachel was gracious enough to take a break from her Cambridge studies to talk to us about her new plant-based diet (link to her awesome blog post, below), thoughts on living out redemption in the present moment and the unique description of the type of love she wants to reflect.  There are some great books linked as well.

Rachel M.

Inspiring biblical passage of the moment: This is more my biblical passage of every moment because I always fall back on it – 2 Corinthians 4. Verse 5 is on the shelf above the kettle in my room, “For what we preach is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as servants for Jesus’ sake”.

Spiritual growth focus at the moment: Gratitude. I would like to truly experience life as I live it, to truly live life to the full, and so I want to live out redemption in the present moment: and I think that means having, knowing and rejoicing in the fullness of the grace of the gospel in no other place than where I am right now.

“I want to live out redemption in the present moment”

Profession: Last year as a philosophy undergrad at the University of Cambridge.

A one sentence bio of yourself: 20 year old follower of Jesus, feminist, recent vegan.

When did you first encounter God? Reading The Heavenly Man by Brother Yun. I’ve read it multiple times since, but it has never been the same to the first time I read it.

What has helped you grow spiritually in this season? Prayer.

Just read/currently reading: Absolutely read Dorothy Day: Selected Writings, there is so much wisdom in this book:

“You love God as much as the one you love the least”

“There is always the fact of the Fall, as well as the fact of our Redemption”

“A principle remains abstract until it costs you something”.

As part of Lent, I am reading the poetry anthology ‘The Heart’s Time’, by Janet Morely. It gives a poem a day for Ash Wednesday until Easter alongside a small commentary and a question for reflection.

Top three essentials: Good company, good humour, nail clippers.

How did God speak to you recently? There is a very long story involving being given a picture by a woman in church who was praying with me, which was the direct match for a picture I had been praying for the previous few weeks. It enabled me to trust God at a point of real uncertainty about the future. The full story is a little too long to share here!

Hobby: Catan and Ticket to Ride, blogging, climbing hills.

Top three practical tips for staying spiritually strong:
1) The headliner is really that there are no shortcuts – just as when you train to run a marathon, you make lots of decisions to train in the months before that point, to live a life as a follower of Jesus well, you choose to seek out Jesus in each day. Pray, read the Bible, make sure you have people you are in fellowship with.
2) Shake it up – I’m enjoying listening to recordings of my friends reading through scripture at the moment, you could also listen to podcasts, read a different version of the Bible, memorize scripture by setting a few verses as your wake up alarm etc.
3) Keep track – set up some sort of system to track what is happening spiritually. My blog has inadvertently become an amazing log of God’s faithfulness, but I also have a rough notebook where I process what I’m reading in scripture, write words that people give to me, etc.

“My blog has inadvertently become an amazing log of God’s faithfulness”

Favorite person in scripture? Rhoda (Acts 12:13-14) the servant who forgets to actually open the door to Peter in her excitement. How wonderfully human.

What do you want people to learn about God when they look at you? There exists a chance for intimacy and connection of the best sort. Love deeper than the pop culture trope of two people craving to possess each other. Love in the way that is being fully known, by One whose love is unending and unchanging. Who has given everything of themselves for you without demanding anything in return.

“Love deeper than the pop culture trope of two people craving to possess each other.”

Favorite season? Summer.

Favorite holiday? Easter.

A dream you have? To live life in such a way that would not make sense were it not for God’s existence.

“To live life in such a way that would not make sense were it not for God’s existence.”

A special tradition you and your family engage in or keep: Eating chocolate puddle pudding.

Question you will ask when you get to heaven? I think all my questions will dissipate and I will find myself a) awestruck b) suddenly thinking ‘oh, it all makes sense, how beautiful– this is why’.

Thing you want to raise awareness about: The biblical case for reducing your consumption of meat. See this blog post.

What do you usually do before 9 a.m.? Breakfast, quiet time, a couple of hours of work.

Define Christianity in a sentence: The single most beautiful answer to the tragedy of death.

For more Rachel:
Website: thejoyofrachel.com
Insta: @manderrachel

Until next time, keep witnessing!

XOXO