Theo Karvounakis

I have been a Christian since my childhood, when my blind eyes were opened to see Jesus Christ as my Lord and God, Savior and King at an evangelical summer camp in Cape Sounion. Since then, I am growing in Him more convicted of my sin, more assured of his forgiveness. For many years I struggled with assurance though. Whenever I listened to a gospel message I felt compelled to make a new start. My childhood was full of testimonies in the church about that glorious day that the Lord washed away the sins of some individual and completely changed her life. I made the decision to be baptised when I was 22. Many things did not change, although I was growing in my knowledge of God through his word and I was serving madly in many different capacities. At the age of 26, I left Greece to study in the UK and there, at All Souls Langham Place Church, I experienced church life in a way I had not before. I was exposed to a great amount of resources and most important I learned to humbly receive in church rather than just give. I experienced true fellowship and I was amazed and enthused by the gospel. Maturity and growth were apparent these years and at the same time God created in me a burden for Greece. It seems that God used my bad Greek past to ignite in me a passion for my people through my positive UK present. Everything I read or heard, I wanted to share with other people back in Greece. I decided to join Cornhill Training Course of the Proclamation Trust and go back to Greece as a witness, abandoning the prospect of an academic career in law. Since my return to Athens, God opened the way for different opportunities of serving. Since 2018, I have returned to Greece joining the First Greek Evangelical Church of Athens as its associate pastor. Last January, I was invited to be the new principal of the Greek Bible College, as the previous head of the school, Jeff Baldwin, was seriously ill and eventually passed this March. My new appointment begins in June. Throughout all these years, I have learned from experience that the Christian journey is a communal one, like a song of ascents, and interpersonal relationships of accountability and discipleship are an integral part. I keep growing by the power of the Holy Spirit with the support of many Pauls, Silases, but also Timothys in my life, the constant feeding of the Word of God and the wisdom of the saints that precede me in this journey.