Peter Blake – Joining us in 2020
In December our children’s minister, Leah Gorring, is marrying Peter Blake. The good news is that in 2020/21 Peter will study at Moore College, live in the Shire and join our church as a student minister.
I asked Pete some questions, which he was kind enough to answer.
How did you first come to Christ?
I was raised knowing Christ from a very early age. My Mum and Dad raised me in the prayerful expectation that I would follow him. I think the earliest memory of me making a conscious decision to follow Jesus was when I tried to give a bible to a non-Christian friend in year 1 at school. I have a very clear memory of him pushing it away which helped me see that there was a choice in following Jesus. I remember thinking that I did not want make the choice that he did.
What did you do for work before your current ministry apprenticeship (at UNSW)?
I served in the Army for 9 years. I trained as an Officer for 4 years at ADFA and RMC Duntroon and served in various logistic and training positions for 5 years. I lived in Townsville, Wagga Wagga and Sydney with a brief posting in the UAE for 7 months.
Why have you chosen to serve in full time ministry?
There were a lot of factors. I think the biggest was reading 1 Corinthians 7. Broadly speaking this chapter is about the Christian attitude towards marriage and singleness. Among other reasons, Paul says that his view of marriage and singleness is shaped by the “present distress” or “current crisis”. Some believe this to be a localised Corinthian crisis. I disagree. I think Paul clarifies what he means in verses 29-31: “This is what I mean brothers, the appointed time has grown very short…for the present form of this world is passing away”. The crisis Paul is talking is time bound, not geographically confined, and concerns the whole world. Paul sees the current world passing away. He also sees people in distress because they do not know the gospel and he sees time running out for them to know. These verses provided for me an irresistible call to go into full time ministry. I need to share the gospel, and I need to help others do so as well.
What has been good about doing a ministry apprenticeship?
I think an apprenticeship is helpful in providing you with an opportunity to do ministry alongside others under the supervision of a good trainer who will help you to grow in godly character and conviction.
I was very comfortable in the ‘Army bubble’ and had been developed to think and operate their way since high school. I think both the Army and Ministry broadly operate on similar principles. We have a desire to serve each other, we value strong, example driven leadership and we value teamwork. However, success is defined very differently (results driven verse faithfulness to God’s word) and love is a virtue which is vital in ministry which I think is pushed to the side in the Military. I think many people who transition from secular work to ministry will face similar challenges.
Why are you marrying Leah?
I love being around her. She and I share the same sense of humour and make each other laugh. She understands me even when I don’t make sense and she can empathise with me even though she may not have shared the same experience. She is also very relaxing to talk to. I think things are just easy with her! We have been able to talk about fairly significant aspects of life with ease.
What are you looking forward to in 2020?
I am looking forward to being married – it’ll be nice to hang out with Leah more.
I am looking forward to starting at college. I’m very excited to have the chance to study God’s word thoroughly for 4 years and share that experience with such a great community at Moore College.
I am looking forward to joining with everyone at Jannali in jointly proclaiming Christ in the Shire!