26/09/2025
๐๐ถ๐ป๐ฑ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ถ๐ด๐ต๐ ๐ถ๐ป ๐๐ถ๐ณ๐ฒโ๐ ๐๐ผ๐๐ฟ๐ป๐ฒ๐ โจ
At 22, I married my childhood sweetheart. Ours had been a stop-start romance since meeting at 15 and 17 (I even lied about my age for almost a year!). On our wedding day, I had what I call my โbright lights experienceโ โ a moment where I felt lifted, touched, and compelled to live differently.
๐๐ป ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ณ๐ผ๐น๐น๐ผ๐๐ฒ๐ฑ, ๐ ๐ฝ๐ผ๐๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐บ๐ ๐ฒ๐ป๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ด๐ ๐ถ๐ป๐๐ผ ๐ต๐ฒ๐น๐ฝ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ผ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ฟ๐:
Driving buses for the elderly ๐
Volunteering in hospices
Working charity shops
Learning CPR and giving back wherever I could
Later, my search for meaning took me and my wife backpacking โ even to India in the footsteps of George Harrison โ before I landed in Sydney and began working for Rupert Murdoch at 25. Returning to the UK with โbaby in tow,โ I threw myself into business, chasing Mammon and forgetting my spiritual quest.
But life has a way of calling you back. At 33, our closest friend Richard lost his battle with leukaemia, leaving behind a young family just like ours. His courage โ and the support he found in a local church โ inspired me to be baptised, at the very same age Jesus was crucified.
That was the start of my journey as a born-again Christian โ not the end.
๐ ๐ฆ๐ผ๐บ๐ฒ๐๐ถ๐บ๐ฒ๐, ๐ถ๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ธ๐ฒ๐ ๐น๐ผ๐๐, ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ณ๐น๐ฒ๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป, ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ด๐ฒ ๐๐ผ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฑ๐ถ๐๐ฐ๐ผ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ฝ๐๐ฟ๐ฝ๐ผ๐๐ฒ. ๐ ๐ ๐ณ๐ฎ๐ถ๐๐ต ๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ถ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ ๐ฏ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ผ๐บ๐ฒ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ณ๐ผ๐๐ป๐ฑ๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐ผ๐ณ ๐ต๐ผ๐ ๐ ๐น๐ถ๐๐ฒ, ๐น๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฑ, ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐๐ฒ โ ๐ถ๐ป ๐ฏ๐๐๐ถ๐ป๐ฒ๐๐ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ถ๐ป ๐น๐ถ๐ณ๐ฒ.