What is your ministry?
I serve as a senior pastor in our local church. My role is to mentor new leaders, develop new strategies with my team, implement the vision, develop new departments, and make our church more visible to the community through different projects, teaching, and leading small groups.
When did you trust Christ?
When I was 16 years old, the Word of God convicted me of my sin, giving me the solution for this through the saving grace of God. I accepted Jesus as my personal Lord and Savior, and my life has changed. I was baptised in May 2000, and I can say that through the following years, God has used His Spirit to help me grow in His understanding and love.
What have been the defining moments of your Christian walk?
One of the most defining moments in my life was when God called our family from Austria, where we were living, to move back to Romania. It was a step of faith, and God was preparing us for the ministry and greater things. Another defining moment was when we were about to receive our third child. Our daughter was diagnosed with a chromosomal disorder. We trusted God, and we prayed for healing, which happened. How I became a pastor is also a defining moment in my life. I was ministering as a youth leader and was ordained as pastor also. The Senior Pastor stepped down suddenly; I was the only person available to take his place. I accepted reluctantly, but God helped me understand that I need Him more than people, strategies, or plans to serve others best. I discovered the power of intimacy in prayer and realised that God values a humble heart and blesses His servants.
What do you hope to gain from participating?
I lack some essential counseling skills and need practical ways of implementing different ideas, especially with my team. ELF would help me by giving me the initial push to start networking with people skilled in the areas I need to develop. I am positive ELF is a place where I will be encouraged by the different real stories told and the information I will be accumulating.
What is your leadership role or what were your past leadership roles?
My past leadership roles include Project Manager, Youth Leader, Pastor, and Senior Pastor.
Why should someone invest in your ministry?
I reached a point in my ministry where I felt stuck, and this is my first conference or training since I became a pastor. I was reluctant until now to leave the church for even one Sunday. The church I serve and the team I lead need an improved and fresh leader, and I know I need fresh winds under my wings. The past two years have left a deep mark on me, mentally and spiritually, and I would use this conference as a tipping point for me and my ministry. I made a great leap of faith doing this registration because I do not yet have the funds for the conference, but I know this is something that I need for myself, and the ministry and God will make way for this to happen.
