At the age of sixteen I became a Christian and shortly afterwards a missionary visited our church and asked if there was anyone who felt God was calling them to following his example. At this point I prayed to God "if this is your will for my life then I would go gladly." I waited patiently for confirmation but never felt called. I therefore worked within my church environment and took on many roles, but something was missing in what was a very happy and fruitful church life.
Many years later at a meeting someone came to talk about Glasgow Street Pastors. As he spoke, I became aware of a silence in the hall and all I could hear was God, after fifty-two years, clearly telling me that this was what He wanted me to become - a Street Pastor.
I found that a training course was starting the following week, so I quickly filled out an application form and had an informal interview at St. George's Tron church. Th very next week I was on the training course! That was March 2019 and in June that year I was commissioned as a Street Pastor. My church family pray for me and all my GSP team at 2130 on a Saturday evening just before we go out on our monthly patrol in Glasgow city centre.
On my very first patrol, late on in the night myself and my team partners Anne and Graham were approached by two men who told us their friend had stopped breathing after taking a drugs overdose. We followed them back to the close and found their friend with no sign of life. Graham and I commenced CPR and called for an ambulance. Shortly after the paramedics arrived, I was amazed to find one of the them was my Christian son-in-law! The man was revived after some time and recovered fully in hospital.
How good is God! His hand was with me that whole night and I now knew for certain this was where God wanted me to serve Him. Since that time on the streets of Glasgow I have had countless re-assurances that I was in the centre of His will.
