What is your background?  

I am a theologian and a pastor in the Lutheran Church. I am married to Alex, and we are both from Denmark, but live in Oxford in the UK now together with our lovely cat, Edward. When Alex and I had both completed our MAs in theology, we went into mission with a desire to help pastors in other parts of the world, who had limited access to theological training. 

We went to the north-eastern part of Nigeria for three years, then Sierra Leone for four years. During our time there, we were privileged to teach church leaders on different levels and under different circumstances, right from BA students at an established seminary, to struggling readers in remote villages, from pastors with experience from many years of ministry who were pursuing further education, over people preparing for ordination, to lay-leaders who had never completed a formal education.  

I loved teaching. I loved the discussions, and I loved seeing the lights getting lit in people’s eyes when they were really engaged with the topics and learned something, and I loved supporting groups of people who were learning together. They taught me so very much and it was truly a privilege to take part in their learning journey. 

Why did you join DECIBEL? 

As members of the world church, we need to support these pastors, who are out there serving with varying degree of training, and who are so eager to learn and be better equipped for their role, so Kingdom Change will break through in all corners of the world. The need is so very big: So many churches are struggling to find qualified leaders, and with the rapid growth of the church this need is only getting bigger. If we do not answer, there is a great risk of faulty teaching, misled congregations, and of discouragement leading to burn out amongst the leaders. DECIBEL is taking part in combatting this, aiming at a group of people who is often overlooked. 

What are your current responsibilities within DECIBEL? 

I am heading the DECIBEL Training department where we develop Biblical, practical, and relevant training materials for church leaders, who are preferred oral learners. These courses are made in an audio-visual format, so the learning can be accessible for the vast majority of people in this world, who do not learn through reading texts. Courses are designed for groups so peers can learn together and are to be led by facilitators to ensure the quality.  

I am overseeing the whole process from writing, editing, and commenting course manuals, over conceptual design ideas, to signing off the final course videos. I have also done some group facilitation to ensure that the format works, but prefer to observe others using the courses, so I can harvest knowledge on how they are used and continue to improve them.  

What are you dreaming about for the future? 

I am dreaming of having a full curriculum for church leaders, presented in an audio-visual format in many languages, so all pastors will have access to relevant training, and every congregation be pastored by a trained leader. It is as simple as that.  

I am also dreaming that our team will continuing to learn how best to improve courses and techniques, remain innovative, and use all of our talents in this, so these remote pastors will be served first and with the best resources on the marked.