Sharon Dirckx

Why does God allow suffering and natural disasters? What’s the relationship between my brain and my spirit? Speaker, author, and apologist Sharon Dirckx doesn’t shy away from the tough questions. Equipped with a scientific background (including a Ph.D. in brain imaging) and a deep relationship with Jesus, she faces those questions head-on with biblical truth, evidence, and compassion. Come and be fascinated as Sharon opens up about the activities and sights that leave her speechless, her not-so-ideal fear of public speaking, and the moments she’s felt “the smile of heaven.”

QUESTION #1: ACQUAINT

There’s much more to food than palate and preference. How does a go-to meal at your favorite hometown restaurant reveal the true you behind the web bio?

I grew up in Durham — although not North Carolina, sadly. I grew up in the older, colder version in the U.K. with a gorgeous 900-year-old cathedral. I lived there until I went to University at 18.

As far as beliefs go, at that point, I didn’t really think about spiritual things and wasn’t sure what I believed. That all changed for me around the age of 20 and the adventure from there took me to Basel (Switzerland), Cambridge (U.K.), and Milwaukee (U.S.).

Nineteen years ago, my husband, Conrad, and I returned to Oxford in the U.K., and we’ve been here ever since. We have two children, Abby (16) and Ethan (14), and we love eating out together.

The mealtime memory that comes to mind is actually my most recent birthday. We booked a table at my favorite place, an Italian restaurant called Mamma Mia Pizzeria. Eating pizza with my husband and children takes me to a happy place — especially when someone else gets to load and unload the dishwasher.

As we ate that September evening, we took in our new surroundings as the restaurant had recently moved. People watching. Food comparisons. Giggling at the picture behind us of a scantily clad male statue. Catching up on each other’s days — the good and the challenging. Family selfies that our teenagers insisted be taken by them. My arms don’t ever seem to be long enough to get everyone in! Just a normal evening out for the Dirckx family.

Two cooking apples still on the tree — Bill Eccles; Unsplash

QUESTION #2: REVEAL

We’ve all got quirky proclivities and out-of-the-way interests. So what are yours? What so-called “nonspiritual” activities do you love and help you find spiritual renewal?

One of my favorite activities is to sit and read on the swing chair at the back of our garden. There aren’t too many months when we can sit outside in the U.K., but the sunlight lingers on the swing chair at the end of the day before it dips behind the houses. That’s my favorite time of day. In summer and early autumn, there’s a warm yet not intense heat with some dappled light from the apple tree. I like to read there and, even more so, to fall asleep.

I also love to run. Being outdoors and moving, feeling the wind on my face, and listening to music is a restorative place for me. I ruminate on life, replay old conversations, and imagine new ones. On good days, I smile at passers-by and occasionally pray a silent blessing over them. As an author and speaker, I’ve often had ideas come to me while running that have inspired my work. The way to begin a chapter I was struggling to write. Or a way to structure a talk.

But the activity that takes me to a place of awe and speechlessness is skiing in the mountains — especially the Swiss Alps. God seems to have poured a disproportionate amount of creative beauty into this particular part of the world. This isn’t a regular activity for me but rather something I occasionally get to do. Time in the mountains for me is like a reboot. It takes me out of myself. It’s a reminder that I’m part of something much bigger than me.

QUESTION #3: CONFESS

Every superhero has a weakness. Every human, too. We’re just good at faking it. But who are we kidding? We’re broken and in this thing together. So what’s your kryptonite and how do you hide it?

One of my biggest struggles in recent years has been anxiety about public speaking. That’s not ideal as a preacher and Christian communicator!

My worst scenario for a long time was sitting in a group and waiting for my turn to speak as we worked our way around to each person. Waiting for my turn or being called upon on the spot was very stressful, and it led to frustration and a sense of being my own worst enemy.

Anxiety at those moments seemed to hold me back from being who I wanted to be and saying what I wanted to say. I’m still working through this particular “thorn in my flesh” (see 2 Corinthians 12:7). Part of me wishes I could be a slick and charismatic person. But another part of me knows that there’s also safety in depending on God for every breath in those moments and asking for his help and strength. Time and again, he has given me all that I needed and has opened doors that I never thought would be possible.

Other struggles? I definitely eat too much sugar and have even reached for the biscuit tin (or “cookie jar” as you say in the U.S.) while writing this. I also wonder if I rely on caffeine a bit too much in the mornings. I know there’s more to be done in my life when it comes to leaning into God and experiencing more of his power in my weakness.

QUESTION #4: FIRE UP

Tell us about your toil. How are you investing your professional time right now? What’s your obsession? And why should it be ours?

About 15 years ago, I had an idea to write a book on suffering. I began to pray about it and asked God that if this was just my idea, he would cause it to fade but that if it was his idea, it would grow and come into being.

Around the same time, I was working through a devotional book with a prayer for each day. Part of the prayer on that particular day had these words: “Release the writer in me.” It was much too specific to be a coincidence. God had called me to write not just that book but several others as well, and I trust there are books still yet to be written.

Why write? Because books can go places we can’t. They can speak to people we may never meet in person. Books change lives. I’ve tried to write books that Christians can buy and give to their friends — accessible and engaged with the real world. My first book, “Why?: Looking at God, Evil and Personal Suffering” (IVP 2013), combines stories of people who have suffered with responses to some of the difficult questions we ask. It went on to win an award in 2014.

My second book, “Am I Just My Brain?” (The Good Book Company 2019), examines the assumption some people make that we’re determined entirely by the brain cells inside our skull. Questions of human identity are of vital importance and carry implications that extend into areas such as AI, ethics, and religious experience.

My most recent book, “Broken Planet” (IVP 2023), examines why God might allow earthquakes, hurricanes, wildfires, pandemics and other natural disasters. Similar to Why?, it combines stories from the front line with responses to tricky questions that our friends might ask.

I should also say that I speak internationally on these topics and more. For further details, check out my website dirckx.org.

QUESTION #5: BOOST

Cashiers, CEOs, contractors, or customer service reps, we all need grace flowing into us and back out into the world. How does the Holy Spirit invigorate your work? And how do you know it’s God when it happens?

I’m a firm believer in the power of prayer, and most days, I set aside time to read Scripture, seek God, and commit my day to him. I pray for his kingdom to come and for his will to be done rather than my own.

I truly believe that prayer changes life for the better. It shifts things and moves them closer to how they were always supposed to be — even if my feelings about God and prayer go up and down.

I also meet with God through music, what Christians call worship. There’s a sense of mystery in how the notes and words together bring me into the presence of God. When I’m working on a particular writing project, I also ask people to specifically pray for me each day. If I’m preparing to give a talk, I ask people to pray.

Most of the time, writing is like a discipline. Just. Keep. Going. Even if it doesn’t feel inspired. Often it's not until I step back later and view the work as a whole, that I see more clearly that God has been at work all along.

There was one particular occasion when writing Why? when I tangibly felt I experienced the “smile of heaven.” I had been writing about the death of Jesus on the cross and how he stood in the firing line for us, taking the world’s evils upon himself so that evil need not sink and finish us. I felt close to God while writing. And then I put my pen down and went for a run. I was full of energy and sensed God’s deep pleasure. I had written something of eternal significance about the most important event in history. Sometimes a moment of inspiration can have an impact on someone for eternity. That’s the immense privilege and joy of writing.

QUESTION #6: inspire

Scripture and tradition beckon us into the rich and varied actions that open our hearts to the presence of God. So spill it, which spiritual practice is workin’ best for you right now?

Each morning, I get up around 6 a.m. I go downstairs and make coffee and take a cup upstairs for Conrad. Then back down I go, turning on the low lighting in the family kitchen. Sitting on the sofa, I begin with the 10-minute reflection from Lectio 365, developed by 24/7 Prayer, which centers me and shifts my focus from self to God.

Eventually, the sun rises and light floods in (when it's not raining or cloudy). At the moment, I’m also working through a commentary called “Paul for Everyone: The Prison Letters” by N.T. Wright, which covers Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians and Philemon. So I read a section of the Bible, first in the NIV translation and then in Wright’s translation, and I notice differences and things that stand out. I might ruminate on particular words and begin to pray around them and about how to apply them to my own life.

I try not to let this time develop into a shopping list of prayers. Instead, my goal is to ask the Lord to guide me, speak to me, and show me his priorities. I also ask that he bring people to my mind throughout the day so I can pray as I go.

Music is also an important part of how I meet with God. There’s something mysterious about how particular words and chords move me deeply and transport me into the kingdom of God, where life is clearer and brighter from his perspective. I sometimes sense God speaking when the same verse keeps coming up in different contexts.

It’s also not uncommon for me to have dreams. While praying and worshipping with other people, I meet with God as well, sometimes more so than when I’m on my own. An area I’d like to rediscover is fasting. In this season, I think I need people to fast with so there can be mutual encouragement.

QUESTION #7: FOCUS

Our email subscribers get free ebooks featuring our favorite resources — lots of things that have truly impacted our faith lives. But you know about some really great stuff, too. What are three resources that have impacted you?

The resource that first comes to mind is the book “What’s So Amazing About Grace?” by Philip Yancey. We’re so driven by the idea that relationships come with conditions. Quid pro quo. Give and take. You get out what you put in. And of course, that’s all true — but not as a basis for entering into a relationship with God.

God has done for us what we could never have done for him or for ourselves. As a young Christian, I found Philip Yancey’s book so helpful for mining the depths of the extravagantly generous and free gift of God that cost him the earth so that we could know him.

The second resource is a book of praises and promises that I’ve used for many years. It’s called “Passionate Living” by Kenneth Boa. This book causes me to pray prayers that I wouldn’t come up with on my own and yet are powerful in separating light from darkness and fixing me on Jesus.

Thirdly, I’d recommend another book, “The Sanity of Belief: Why Faith Makes Sense” by Simon Edwards. This is an excellent resource arguing for the credibility of the Christian faith in a contemporary way, and it’s a great one to read and then give to friends.

I’m also loving the Bible Project’s summaries of the biblical books. So brilliant and helpful!

We all have things we cling to to survive (or thrive) in tough times. Name one resource you’ve found indispensable in this current season — and tell us what it’s done for you.

For me, it’s the Lectio 365 app developed by the 24/7 Prayer team. It’s so easy to quickly become introspective in prayer, but this app has helped me to keep thinking biblically about God and to approach him with confidence. Lectio 365 has helped me to pray prayers that, if they were answered, could only be attributed to God.

QUESTION #8: dream

God is continually stirring new things in each of us. So give us the scoop! What’s beginning to stir in you but not yet fully awakened? What can we expect from you in the future?

For many years, I’ve prayed for opportunities to write for national and regional newspapers because of the potential to reach a wide number of people with the gospel.

In February 2023, I had the opportunity to write for The Times newspaper in response to the Turkey/Syria earthquake, and it felt like an answer to prayer that had been many years in the making. I’d love to find ways to do more of this across a range of newspapers. I also see potential on TV channels, having recently had the opportunity to speak to former MP Michael Portillo on GB News.

As a freelance speaker and author, I’d love to create or be part of a community of people who discuss current topics and bounce ideas around about how to engage with mainstream media. I’m also hoping to embark on a joint writing project focused on one of the Gospels, so that’s exciting. And there are more books to come, Lord willing.

My big-picture fear is that I might get distracted from the primary things that God is calling me to do. There are many things that I could do, but only some things that I should do. Please pray that I can use my time, my days, and my life wisely and for God’s glory — and that I stay on track.

Earlier in our interview, Sharon mentioned that her career in book writing started with a thought. Just one, simple thought.

Through prayer and diligence, that one moment grew into a calling.

But what if Sharon had ignored that thought of writing a book? What if she told herself, “I’m not a writer. It would never work. This can’t be from God”? She wouldn’t have written three books that have helped numerous people walk more closely with Jesus.

Time to get honest with ourselves: What could happen if we don’t ignore the thoughts that inspire and maybe even scare us? What could God do through us if we choose to be open to the Holy Spirit’s quiet nudges?