When Sophie De Witt first encountered the gospel of Jesus, she found it strange and unnerving. Despite her initial resistance to what she had deemed intellectually ridiculous - something that would have been reinforced in daily lectures by her uni professor, renowned atheist, Richard Dawkins - Sophie became less convinced of her own position as she encountered more evidence for the truth of the Bible. It was God working through friends and evangelists like Rico Tice and John Chapman that led her to finally put her trust in Jesus. Listen to her story here as she speaks to Taryn Hayes of how she has learned to cling to Christ more and more through many of life’s obstacles..
EPISODE NOTES
Like so many, Sophie De Witt finally committed her life to trusting Jesus after hearing a series of talks in the UK by the much-loved, Australian evangelist, Chappo. Today, she partners with her husband, Chris, in a number of gospel ways including raising their three children, Molly, Zach and JoJo, in South Africa. Together with others, Chris and Sophie are co-founders of Hope Training Course, Hope Central Church and of Grace Primary School, a school following a Charlotte Mason approach to education. Whilst facing health issues, ADD and an increasingly frustrating struggle with what she calls ‘Compulsive Comparison Syndrome’, Sophie undertook to find out what the Bible had to say about her struggle. Compared to Her (The Good Book Company) is the result of her research. She is also the author of a discipleship Bible-reading handbook called One to One: Discipleship Handbook (Authentic Media). On her days off, she loves going on family walks or sightseeing outings, reading and definitely also watching TV, ideally whilst eating chocolate!
This interview was recorded in early 2019.
LINKS MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:
Grace Primary School
Hope Central Church
Charlotte Mason
For the Children’s Sake by Susan Schaeffer Macauley
Prayer Mate App
Solid Joys App by John Piper
John Chapman (Chappo)
Sophie’s Books: Compared to Her & One to One Handbook
Grow Women’s Conference 2020 – Grow Chats
SHOW SNIPPETS:
"I’d never interrogated my own beliefs about spirituality or life. The more I did, I realised I had no evidence and no coherence in it. More and more, what I was reading in the Bible and (other) seemed coherent. But it meant a big lifestyle change and I wasn’t willing for that. So, what started off as intellectual ended up as being a kind of submission, trust issue. And then it was in my third year, we had a big mission there and it was headed up by none other than Chappo, John Chapman, from Australia…."
"Well, I think what’s encouraging to me, and especially when I talk to young people, and when we did student work, is that I was one of those students who ridiculed, was hostile, rejected, laughed, disagreed. And yet this Lord still got me! (I) encourage people just to persevere. And those are the very people you thank now and for eternity."
"Comparison is something that I struggled with generally … not growing up with a Christian framework."
"From her book, Compared to Her: “I am a recovering Compulsive Comparison Syndrome sufferer. It causes me to feel envy, despair, pride and superiority. It cuts away at my relationship with God, with my loved ones, and with myself. It has promised me contentment, and yet robbed me of it. And although I don’t know you at all, I’m fairly sure you have CCS, too. That’s not meant to sound rude. It’s just that I’ve rarely met a woman who doesn’t struggle with it.”
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