My first name is Paul,
I was born of missionary parents in the country of Swaziland, now known as eSwatini, which is close to Mozambique on the South Eastern coast of Africa.
My father was born to a farming family in Southern Indiana in the early 1900’s, in a culture that survived on both skills in farming and marketing of basic needs. God used the situation and its challenges to draw the family to Himself. Farming for money and survival at the same time was a common challenge in those days.
God chose to bring His Word and sound preaching thereof in a camp-meeting style, and many found the Lord in very unique ways. My father was one of them that came to the Lord, and began to lead young people to the Lord in these camp-meeting days.
Sensing his vision, a woman who felt she had missed God’s best by getting married too early, shared a book she had written on the subject, and urged him to use it to raise money to go to Bible College.
He was successful, went to college in Michigan, where he met my mother Shortly after graduation, they were married. They travelled to South Africa and called the people to repentance, and living out the Christian life.
That is where it started for me – the family then moved from Swaziland, (iSwatini), to the Cape, where I started in primary school (or the grades, as we would say in the US. During that time, God brought co-missionaries from other missions from the Islands south of the Americas with a fervor for true conversion. It was there that God moved in my spirit, and through the fear of God, was led to Salvation, after which another missionary shared the beautiful passage of Romans 8:28, which gave me a new vision for life.
Normal schooling, and moves with our family to several locations in Africa, to prepare for a worldwide ministry for my parents, prepared me for studies towards ministry.
I settled the question of my calling prior to marriage, and studied accordingly, moving back to South Africa with my wife to pastor in three churches there.
We then went to the United States, where we have been in pastoral ministry since.
As i look back, the most vital thing we have learned is that God calls at the realization of Who is trying to communicate with the one He selects. Once this is settled, He leads the way, as Psalm 43:3 teaches.
To this day, I love how He communicates and leads accordingly!
As we recognize Him, and follow Him, we soon realize that everything comes from Him.
Paul Wilson