Biography

I am 25 years old and married to Emma.  We live in inner suburban Melbourne.  We were married in August 1999 in a her hometown of Bairnsdale, about four hours drive from Melbourne.  Emma is a law librarian working for a large legal firm and I am employed as a full time servant for the Lord at the congregation where we worship in West Heidelberg.  My role includes evangelism, visitation (personal bible studies, small group meetings and aged care) and correspondence course organisation.  Basically I consider myself employed to be a Christian. I do not have a formal ministry education although I am currently working through units of study by correspondence through Macquarie School of Biblical Studies in Sydney.  Our church has not employed a full time servant previously and it is a really positive and exciting step in the work of God's kingdom.  In 2000 I was employed part time and this year it has become full time. I am able to call on the experience of other workers in Victoria as well as the advice of mature Christians at our congregation.  Emma and I are most fortunate to be part of a church that consists of about 50 loving members who we consider family.  We come from wonderful homes both having loving Christian parents.  Emma has 2 brothers and 2 sisters and I have 1 brother and 1 sister.  They are all building a relationship with Christ which is fantastic.

Spiritual Background

I was born into a family of Christian parents and have always had the solid teaching of God's word to guide me in life.  I was a fairly good student and when I finished school at 18 I went on to University to study commerce.  I ended up lasting only a few months and dropping out to find a job.  I worked as a lackey for a stationery company for a few years until my life "came to a head" at about the age of twenty one.  Although I had been brought up in a Christian home I was far from living a Christian life.  Since the age of about 16 I had had been developing quite a serious drinking problem and by 21 was drinking virtually every night of the week.  I was working very long hours at this stage and not sleeping enough which all contributed to my nerves packing up and basically I fell in a heap.  At this stage I quit my job and with the loving support of my family and the church I sought to turn my life back to Christ.  I was actually baptised in 1990 but I didn't surrender my life to Christ in reality until 1997.  The one thing I remember vividly is saying to an older Christian, "How long until Jesus forgives me".  I was astounded when I learned about the instant total forgiveness of Jesus Christ.  I struggled to accept His mercy at first but I am constantly learning to lean more and more upon Him for all my sufficiency before God.  Since 1997 I have been seeking God's will and trying to develop the Christian qualities that the bible speaks of.  I have been learning more about how God wants me to relate to other people.  I am also trying to understand life from a non-Christian point of view in order to be perceptive in spreading the message of Jesus.  I, like many others, still struggle to deal with sin in my life and understand the need for improvement.  I thank Jesus for His forgiving spirit and the help and inspiration he gives me to lead a more holy life each day.

Favorite Verses

John 19:25-27  "Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother's sister, Mary the wife of  Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, 'Dear woman, here is your son,' and to the disciple, 'Here is your mother.' From that time on, this disciple took her into his home."

Why I Am a WBS Teacher

It is a priviledge and a duty to be of service in God's kingdom.  For me to experience the love and blessings in Christ required certain people in the past to take the time to guide me and my parents to know Christ.  

Hobbies / Interests

Riding my kangaroo to work.
Cricket (Do you know what that is?)
Australian Rules Football
Golf (any sport really)
Playing board games
Travelling (not really overseas but more around Australia)
Reading (I read a lot of Christian books)

(The first one is a joke!)

I really love to study old testament characters of the Bible because they are such good examples of what God wants me to be in my life in new testament times.  These people faced the same struggles I face today thousands of years ago.  Sometimes they fell flat on their faces and sometimes they triumphed.  I can relate to their lives and call upon them for inspiration in time of need.  Some of these characters include Esther, Daniel, Ruth, Joseph, Abraham, Moses and Rahab.

I am also fascinated in history.  Things such as how we got the Bible, archaeology relating to the Bible, other ancient writings apart from the Bible.

My favourite  book in the Bible is Daniel at the moment (it may change at any time!).  In Daniel I constantly read how people were willing to obey God in the smallest  matters even though they faced death as a consequence of their obedience to God (Chapter 1, 3 and 6).