Seeing as last month I gave you all a clear insight into exactly what this ministry is all about, I thought perhaps it was time to give you some of the history. How did I end up here? Did I always want to be doing this? Was there a day when I knew for sure that this was what I was tasked with?

I suppose that last question tells you one thing. THIS IS SOMETHING I’VE BEEN GIVEN TO DO.

Music and faith were two things I was blessed to grow up surrounded by. My family were all musical, and it was something I always wanted to be a part of. Playing instruments well was what I watched my family do for as long as I can remember and so when I was sent for piano lessons, I finally felt a part of it all.

Like many of us when we start something new, I wanted so badly for it to be easy, and require little effort in order to excel. Let’s get one thing straight; that may well be true of some things, but it certainly isn’t true with music. Lesser still the piano. 

You’re probably thinking, “WELL HE MUST HAVE STUCK WITH IT ANYWAY” and you would be right. Well sort of. My mother plays a key role in that part of the story. She would run out of fingers very quickly if she was to count the times where she had to remind me to practice. When I say remind, it may be more accurate to say coax. But she did, and for that I am truly thankful.

There was a point in time however, probably around the age of about 13, where she had to stop reminding me to practice. THIS WAS BECAUSE A NEW PROBLEM HAD ARISEN. I had become so interested in playing hymns and songs that I had been surrounded by in church, that I’d often neglect to practice the material my teacher had set.

Earlier I mentioned that faith was something that I had grown up around and THIS WAS THE TIME WHERE THE TWO WOULD COLLIDE AND CHANGE MY FUTURE FOREVER.  I made a commitment of faith at the age of 6 having always been in church, and I was slowly starting to see how the gifts each of us have, were to be used.

There is a time I specifically remember sitting around the breakfast table in my gran’s conservatory. Conversation turned to gospel music (specifically southern gospel) from across the pond in the USA. I quickly became obsessed. The piano players were exceptional.  Countless hours I would spend in front of YouTube from then on. WATCHING. LISTENING. COPYING. REPEATEDLY.

For a long time, I’d struggled with working out my future. What did I want to be? What did I want to do? I’d finally found it. I wanted to be part of this gospel music scene. The one that had given me such a buzz. The one that encouraged me to be a better piano player.

In 2015, I ended up going to study music at the University of Huddersfield and really focused on my piano playing. The plan was to study for 2 years, complete a 1-year placement in the USA and then return and finish my degree. This wasn’t just a crazy idea I had. The Uni offers placement programs to nearly all its students.

Spoiler alert. That didn’t happen. It did nearly happen though. I had to search for 50 weeks of work in order to complete the placement year. I was hoping to get to America and travel with some of the gospel music ministries out there, learning and developing my playing. I only managed to secure about 25 weeks. THE PLACEMENT YEAR WAS A NO-GO.

Though He would use that desire of mine to guide me, GOD HAD OTHER PLANS. But to be 100% honest with you, it was all was pretty crushing. I had set my heart on going. For so long, I had wanted it, and perhaps even convinced myself it was going to happen. A little tip for anyone reading: DO NOT DO THAT!

So I was in a really strange position. Nothing was coming off for me. Every door I knocked on seemed to be closed. BUT WHY HAD GOD BROUGHT ME THIS FAR? Getting into Uni was a complicated saga in the first place and by this point I’d wrestled for a few years with the question: do I go on with music or go and get a “proper job”? 

All the connections I had made in my search for a placement, had really encouraged me though. As a piano player and as a Christian. Many of them recognized I had ability and they were supportive of a young guy wanting to get into ministry.

I decided to let it lie for a while. I needed to go back to Uni and finish what I had started. But most importantly, now more than ever, I needed to PRAY, PRAY & PRAY SOME MORE.

Just around 6 weeks into my final year of studies, I got a call from a UK based touring music ministry. You can imagine my excitement. Ecstatic doesn’t do it justice. They wanted me to go and work with them on some projects. Wow.

This was amazing. Finally, it was happening. Working with a ministry like this had been what I wanted for so long, but ONLY WHEN I SURRENDERED EVERYTHING TO GOD, DID HE ALLOW IT.

And it got better. I was able to write my dissertation on the group along with a few other papers for my degree. Both of the trips I would make to work with them over the coming months, were signed off by the Uni as research trips.

Never before had I been aware of God putting together all individual pieces of my life like a jigsaw. It was like I’d been trying to put them together for so long, but I wasn’t looking at the picture on the box.

While with this group, I interviewed them all. The learning curve was tremendous. We talked about a host of things including:

• The early years and getting started in ministry
• The week to week running of a travelling music ministry
• The challenges they’d faced over the years
• The things they’d perhaps do differently

The work with these guys though was only temporary and it did eventually come to an end. So what now? I found myself back in the position I’d been in previously, asking God what had it all been for? What did it all mean? What was I to do now?

As I prayed and sought the Lord’s will on it, I decided to re-read all the stuff I’d been working on. Over and over I re read my papers. Part of the answer might be in there somewhere I thought. And one day it sort of leapt off the page.

Am I supposed to start my own ministry? It certainly seemed that way. It was so clear from my own writings. I had basically written an instruction manual on starting a ministry. But how could that possibly be the answer? THAT WAS NEVER THE PLAN. How could I do everything on my own? I’m not a singer and anyway I always wanted to play with other musicians not become a soloist. Not forgetting I’m too young!

Despite my desperate attempts to pick holes in it, and shake it off, I couldn’t escape it. It was on my heart constantly. No matter how hard I prayed, I kept being brought back to starting a ministry.

Ok then, I thought. God if this is what you are asking me to do, then fine. But I must be absolutely sure. So I began contacting everybody and anybody who I thought might have some guidance, some suggestions or maybe even an alternative.

One by one, each person I reached out to, gave me the same answers confirming that this was indeed what God was asking me to do. He had laid the foundations. He had already given me the skills. He’d provided a framework to get going with.

Then God revealed this scripture to me: WHAT WILL BE THE END OF THOSE WHO DO NOT OBEY THE GOSPEL? (1 Peter 4:17). How could I say to God that my feelings, that my desires, that my concerns were of greater value than the souls of those who do not yet know Christ? I couldn’t.

THERE WERE NOW JUST A FEW THINGS TO SORT BEFORE I LAUNCHED.

I had no identity, no discernible brand. I had no website or any online presence for that matter. But once again God provided.

A friend of mine who had studied photography offered to do all of my photos. A graphic designer I had a mutual connection with, was looking for some freelance work to bolster her portfolio and so worked on my branding.  And a member of my home church who works with websites for a living, offered to help me build a site of my own. DONE, DONE AND DONE.

After sorting out the final bits of PA equipment I was needing, I finally had everything. This was it. I was ready to go. I even had some bookings in the diary. How had this happened? Looking back, the journey had been wild. Full of ups and downs, this was completely not how I thought it would end.

Did I say end? This was just the beginning…