My mother was a parishioner in our local Anglican church. I was baptised as a baby and was confirmed as a13 year old. My first encounter with God happened when I was at University. I experienced waves of His love after I simply asked, “God help me!” It was ten years later however when I was 30, that both my wife and I received Jesus as our personal Lord and Saviour. We were having marriage problems, and my newly saved in-laws invited us to some meetings in their local Anglican church. The minister of that church had conducted our wedding seven years earlier. 

That weekend he counselled us, prayed with us to receive the Holy Spirit and renewed our wedding vows. We returned to our hometown different people, born again and filled with Holy Spirit! Shortly after our return we were water baptised in Lake Taupo. We also began a small group in our home so that we could grow together with other believers. After nine years in Taupo, we moved to Hamilton to undertake a career change in another High School. Little did we know that this move would be another launching point for seasonal change.

Four years later, I resigned from my job as a secondary school teacher and joined the pastoral staff of an Assemblies of God church in Hamilton, NZ. By the way, I loved teaching. Many of the skills that I learned in the classroom were useful in pastoral ministry settings. In 1990 our family, including our three children, left NZ and relocated to Brisbane to join the pastoral staff at Garden City Christian Church where we served for the next nine years.

The invitation that we received to come to Brisbane was undergirded by the promises in Isaiah 58:11-12 (NIV) These verses have been and continue to be, foundational to the expressions of our Christian service. My main responsibility in Brisbane was to promote the growth of small groups. During that time, we were also impacted by a move of God, commonly called the ‘Toronto blessing’ perhaps better called the Father’s blessing! I together with countless other believers received a deeper revelation of the spirit of sonship.

In 1999, we planted a church in Logan City called The Vine Community Christian Church. We were committed to the principle that the only basis for fellowship between believers is the life of Christ revealed to the believer by the Holy Spirit. We promoted small group involvement so that giftings could also be identified and exercised for the benefit of all its members. I served as Senior Pastor until November 2018 when I retired from that position.

Retirement for the believer never happens! We continue to promote small groups, including The Gathering. I also mentor men. We also continue to support and partner with The River ministry in Thailand. I enjoy writing. I authored Restored For Good (2019). Any believer who is being restored is also empowered to become a restorer. Just Like My Father (2020) explores spiritual sonship and its impact upon family life. Beginnings (2024) is a practical devotional containing 100 reflections from Genesis. (rosssydneysmith@ gmail.com for any enquiries)

We, Diane and I, have three married children and five beautiful granddaughters. They all love the Lord because “He first loved” them (1 John 4:19)