DID IT MAKE ANY DIFFERENCE?

Not long after this experience I was diagnosed with diptheria and was sent to an isolation ward in the old Belvidere Hospital. I spent the next year there without any family visits, as I subsequently developed Scarlet Fever and a Mastoid. Even as a child God was with me during that year and I remember that I used to talk with Him in my own simple way, and made a remarkable recovery through the prayers of many friends. After that it was school, homework and and all the fun and games that children get up to. I had a good set of pals and a very happy family life. We walked a lot, had many family holidays and adventures. No TV or ‘Gameboy’ so families spent much more time together. But God was never far from my thoughts, prayer was becoming an increasing part of my life and I was learning more of God through the Bible.

WORK THE BIG CHALLENGE

At the age of fifteen I left school and started work in an engineering company in Glasgow. Initially it was a bit tough being a Christian as I had to take a lot of banter and stick from the other apprentices and men. Eventually I became the ‘expert’ on the Bible and religion and all such disputes were referred to ‘the boy’. A life in engineering in a number of companies followed - drawing office, estimating, and sales, much of it as part of the management team. In all these companies everyone knew me as a Christian. Many were not apparently interested, others asked lots of questions and some whose life seemed to centre around the pub and betting shop accused me of being narrow minded. Others I know, became Christians themselves in later years when they reflected on who the Jesus of history really was.

My engineering work, connected with the sugar business, took me to various locations around the world. In the early eighties whilst working in Bangkok I was moved by the plight of the refugees in the camps along the Cambodian border. I felt God was taking my life in a new direction. And He was! Within a few years I was working in Africa as manager of a Christian Relief and Development Organisation, and this was followed by fifteen years in this type of work. I have seen some dreadful situations around the world, but where people commit their lives to Jesus Christ, they always find new life and hope.

'where people commit their lives to Jesus Christ, they always find new life and hope'

FAMILY

My wife and I married when we were twenty, and were blessed with three children, two sons and a daughter. In the early days we worked hard to make ends meet, like most young families. Over the years we established a daily routine of prayer and Bible reading and this we found very helpful as we coped with life’s trials, joys and sorrows. The family are all married now and have children of their own, it’s been good to see them one by one becoming Christians.

My experience has been that God speaks to you through the Bible, and that as you speak with Him in prayer you build this personal relationship with God. It’s hard now to imagine life without God!

CHURCH

Church doesn’t get a very good press these days, and it seems there is some confusion as to what Church really is. Actually, it is a group of Christians meeting together to worship God, to pray and learn more about God from the Bible. Church of course becomes much more meaningful after you have experienced God’s forgiveness in your own life, then you enjoy the company of those who have had a similar experience of this new birth that Jesus spoke about and which faith in Christ brings. Of course Church is also about serving others, and that takes a multitude of different forms. I have been involved in all kinds of work within the Church and community over the years, but I’ve always looked on it, in the final analysis, as service for God Himself. In that way it’s always a priviledge to be involved

THE CHRISTIAN MESSAGE IS REALLY GOOD NEWS

Amazing news in fact! It can be summed up in one verse from the Bible

John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life”.

Try inserting your name in this verse in place of the words ‘the world’ and ‘whosoever’, it makes it really personal, and this message is personal!

HELP

If you would like to find out more about the Christian faith, and what God can do in your life then please get in touch, at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . Someone will respond, we can direct you to a Church near you where you can find support, and send you a copy of one of the the gospels.

We would recommend you attend an Alpha or Christianity Explored course, which really explains the Christian faith in a very relevant way. You should try it!