God sends Andy! His story!

Andy's wrote how he felt Gods call to go into Mission. This was also printed in the Outlook 'magazine' from MBC, Edition 17, March 2009:

After growing up in Boy’s Brigade at MBC, my involvement with church declined, but the Lord grabbed my attention while helping on a Youth camp. I knew the call was to go into mission, but I had a good job, car and lifestyle. However, the call was strong and after leaving my job in January 2002 I joined a Christian organisation called Youth With A Mission, despite at 33 not being so youthful!
I started training and then was sent to Hungary, where we gave English lessons and helped run a Christian coffee shop. On my return I transferred to the ‘Africa Mercy’ ship, then in Newcastle being refitted as the world’s largest non-governmental hospital ship; harder times were to come when money ran out and morale reached rock bottom. But after forty days of prayer, things started to look up, when a foundation gave a large gift. God had answered our prayers!

I was sent to Ghana to join a sister ship already serving the poor in Africa.

My first taste of Africa included the smells, rubbish and heat but above all the desperate need everywhere; we could only help a few but everyone was so appreciative and their joy for life very humbling. We moved to Liberia 3 years after the civil war had ended. It was heart wrenching hearing stories of the atrocities and seeing the destruction. We helped restore the water supply, built a health clinic, drilled bore holes for wells, built a school, taught women in micro-enterprise and performed 25000 medical procedures.
While in Liberia my role on the ship was the transport manager. One night we towed back a vehicle that had broken down two hours away from the ship and this was the first time I had caught the eye of Jutta who was to become my wife.

In 2008 Jutta and I worked in Romania where we helped build emergency housing for the Gypsy community and were involved in a food distribution programme and homeless project.
This year we have been accepted by the Baptist Missionary Society as long-term missionaries. We will undertake training before going to Guinea where I will be providing skills training in mechanical engineering for young adults, and Jutta will provide skills training in micro-enterprise for women and basic medical care.

Valentine’s day this year was a day to remember in my life as this was a day when the whole church got together to celebrate my marriage to Jutta.

Serving the Lord in mission is the best thing I have ever done and now Jutta and I will be serving together.