Articles from the pen of Pastor Stephanus

I have known since I was about 4 years old that all I ever wanted to be was a Pastor. I just wanted to preach and desired to be known as a man of God; it was my passion and my dream.

Having grown up in the church, it was all I knew. Unfortunately most of what was taught when I was young, was religion and the doctrine of the denomination that we as a family belonged to. This was not all bad, but left me feeling empty and disappointed, unable to understand why there was no power. I desired to heal the sick, raise the dead and longed to live a life of victory. Very little of what I saw then resembled this and I longed to be able to demonstrate the Word of God in signs, wonders and miracles.

I was disappointed and felt betrayed by the church and left, back-sliding for a few years, until the Lord brought me back into the fold. Over a period of a number of years He gently dealt with my pride and self-righteousness and showed me that I was just as religious and self-righteous as the very brethren I was angry at. Without Him and a revelation of the Lord Jesus Christ, I was just as hopeless.

He taught me faith and showed me that it was possible to live a life of victory. The Holy Spirit began to open the scriptures to me and showed me that Jesus Christ is yesterday, today and tomorrow forever the same. In June of 2003 the Lord spoke to me and it dawned on me that I would never be fulfilled unless I did what He had created me to be, a minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

However I still resisted the call to full-time ministry, waiting for the Lord to open a door for me to join the staff of an established ministry, which would allow me to preach the Word, while earning a salary and "learning the ropes". Over the next 2 years it became clear to me that this was not His will for my life and that I would have to leave the boat and step out in faith, if I desired to be used by God. For me, this meant planting a congregation in the northern suburbs of Johannesburg, Gauteng Province, South Africa.

In June of 2005 Light the Fire Ministries was born. I am single and the Lord placed my mother with me in the ministry. She has been an invaluable support and help in the ministry and I could never have done it without her partnership. All praise and glory to the Lord! It is by His Grace that this ministry was planted and has continued to flourish.

It is my God-given passion and desire to teach the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the whole world, so that all can have life and be made free of religion and other bondages. To demonstrate the Word in the power of the Holy Spirit; in the words of the Apostle Paul:

“And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God. (2) For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified. (3) And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling. (4) And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power: (5) That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.” (1 Corinthians 2:1-5 KJV)