Counties Evangelist, Jonathan Brain, shares how he had the privilege of baptising a new believer.

Jonathan Brain and his wife Heather are celebrating 25 years as Counties evangelists. They live near Chippenham in Wiltshire. They’ve also set up Maranatha House Church and are attending the M4 Church Planting Programme.

JONATHAN’S STORY

Jerry Shirazian (who featured in Spring 2023’s Ignite magazine, talking about his search for life’s meaning) has become a Christian. And I mean seriously born again! We had been out for a drink and afterward, we sat in my car for four hours and I said: “Why are you sitting on the fence? I could probably give you a bit of a push, but you need to decide.”

And he did. He’s the most convincing convert I have ever come across. He has absolutely, completely got it. He has read Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, and John’s gospel. He’s sending parts of scripture out to people. All the things you dream about are happening.

I had then been thinking about him getting baptised and he sent me a message saying: “I am thinking about getting baptised.” He said he didn’t care where, as long as he could do it. So we baptised him in a trough in our back garden.

He had acknowledged life wasn’t working and said: “I don’t really know why I am sitting on the fence.”

The obvious conclusion was to jump off the fence and leave his old life behind. And he did.

I wanted to share with you all this poem I wrote about his conversion and baptism: