Our Story...

In August 1994 we moved to Burton, a little village outside of Christchurch and near to Moorlands College. As we arrived we met some Christians who were helping the people move out of the house we were renting, as we moved in! They told us that they were planning to plant a church in the village and straight away Sharon and I knew that we would love to be involved with this. Moorlands agreed that this would be our "placement" church.







So over the next few months We worked together with the "core" team and the church was launched at Christmas. As part of the preparation for the church launch, we all went through the "Alpha" course developed by Holy Trinity Brompton, an Anglican church in London, England.







On the part of the course where they focus on the Holy Spirit, I powerfully met with God and was released into new spiritual gifts. But what was most important was that a new love for Jesus was birthed in my heart. This was really a major answer to all those years of praying that I might really begin to love God.







While we were at college God really began to put mission on our hearts. He also began to take us to France.


Sharon, because of her French language skills, was asked to teach, and then to accompany, a group from the college going on a weeks' mission trip to France. I went with members of the church to do building work for French Protestant churches and also on college missions trips.



Again and again God kept taking us to France. Eventually it became obvious (even to us!) that France was where God was calling us to invest our lives.



However, as we tried to pursue this we found nothing but "dead-ends". None of the Protestant, Evangelical organisations that we applied to were interested in us. In fact most of them never even acknowledged our application. We were confused. If God wanted us in France why couldn't we find an organisation we could work with?