Some of our History  (Tim's perspective)

1955: Born: small town of Spooner in north Wisconsin. Father worked on the railroad and took us 6 kids to the local Lutheran church.

1971: Age 15: "Saved" by a loving Father in Jesus through the witness of a group of "Jesus People". 

1973 - 74: Age 17: Started preparation for ministry by attending a Bible School in Minneapolis.

1974 - 76: Age 18: Continued my preparation through a Pastoral Apprenticeship Program under a pastor in Minneapolis.

1976-Spring: Began to seriously question if my ministry call was one of a Pastor. Began to seek God earnestly and He answered most unexpectantly. - with a call to the nations: Isa 49:6 "a light to the nations".   Jn 15: 16 "... go and bear fruit..."

In August God gives me a vision while in prayer that proves to be a vision of destiny for my life: The vision is of Africa & Asia.    

1976-Fall: Age 20: Began missionary training with Youth With A Mission in Kona, HI. God confirms that YWAM is "my tribe" with whom I’m to serve His purposes among the nations.

1977: My missionary training continues at Kona with a one month break in August to return "home" and marry my high school sweetheart JoAnn Crosby. Two weeks after the wedding we’re back in Kona where Loren Cunningham (YWAM’s founder) has asked us to help direct a Discipleship Training School.

1978: JoAnn & I leave Kona, HI. Destination Kenya, East Africa where we will join another couple in pioneering a center of evangelism & discipleship among the Muslim tribes of coastal Kenya. First stop though is YWAM Lausanne, Switzerland where we serve with our YWAM Africa Area Director, Don Stephens before departing for Kenya. During this year we led an intercessory prayer team to Turkey for 2 months, and did evangelistic ministry in Italy and Greece.

1979 - 1981: We arrive in East Africa. I’m amazed as I realize that at age 23 God has already sent me to minister on 5 continents. We serve for 2 years in Mombasa, Kenya. A wonderful, fruitful time. Our hearts are molded with the hearts of our Kenyan friends, disciples and co-workers.

1981-82: Age 25: We return to the U.S. for a one year sabbatical. During this time we lose our first baby, David Timothy. He was still-born at 2 weeks before his due date.

1982-84:  We depart for the Middle East. With an intercessory prayer burden that I have carried for some 8 years for Israel and the Jewish people I conclude that God is sending us to Israel. We arrive in Cyprus, our YWAM Middle East headquarters from which we intend to make our plans to move into Israel. However after a journey into Israel I sense the "Spirit of Jesus not permitting us" to move in permanently - Acts. 16:7. God gives us a heart for the Greek Cypriot people and we labor amongst them bringing the Gospel and Renewal through a ministry of home group meetings. Our baby girl Hannah Joy is born to us in Cyprus.

1984 -88: Age 29 Floyd McClung, our YWAM leader in Amsterdam, Holland asks me to come and help launch a new ministry called "Global Outreach (GO) Teams - Africa". JoAnn & I accept, believing that God is wanting us back in the Africa region. We help direct this ministry over the next years and see multitudes of teams go throughout Africa establishing permanent ministry centers, churches & schools. Our son Stephen is born in Amsterdam. In 1987 JoAnn & I personally take a 3 month team to the islands of Mauritius & Reunion, off the Southeast coast of Africa.

While there God speaks to us that we are to move there long-term to minister into the 5 island nations of Reunion, Mauritius, Madagascar, Seychelles, & Comorros. All 5 island nations are former French colonies and still speak french today. So...

1988 -89: Albertville, France. We begin a 9 month intensive french language course to learn to speak, read & write fluently in french. We succeed and just 5 weeks after the birth of our 2^nd son, Caleb, we leave for Reunion Island to begin our new assignment.

1989 -93: Age 33: Reunion Island, Indian Ocean: The vision: To establish a center in the Indian Ocean Islands from which to pioneer evangelistic, discipleship making, ministries teams which could fan out to the other island nations. All 5 island nations could be considered least-evangelised. The pioneer work we did on this island was some of the most difficult in our lives. The island was rampant with Haitian style witchcraft. During the years of our work there I sensed continual unseen pressure against me. Like walking in a river against the current. In spite of that God gave us much fruit and success. We established Indian Ocean Teams. A short-term mission teams program through which we could recruit, train & send teams to the surrounding islands. As a result, a permanent ministry was established in Madagascar to street children which continues to this day. An ongoing ministry into the country of Mauritius was started, and seeds planted into a couple who today are leading a permanent ministry in the Comorro islands. Today the work we established on Reunion Island continues. By 1993 the pioneer work had taken it’s toll on me emotionally and physically. God directed us to link up with another branch of YWAM - Mercy Ships. So after 16 years of overseas service we moved to Mercy Ships International Office in East Texas.

1993 - 2002: Age 37: East Texas: It was a new season for us. After years of pioneer mission work it was time to begin investing in the next generation of pioneer missionaries. However Mercy Ships asked me to start as Director of Personnel Services. As a rapidly growing ministry the Personnel was in need of immediate attention. I served in that role for nearly 2 years but by then I had a proposal drawn up for the creation of a new arm of Mercy Ships which is called Mercy Teams: land-based teams serving alongside the ships and remaining long-term after the ships left to engage in long-term ministries of discipleship, church-planting, medical, agricultural & educational programs. The proposal was approved and  Mercy Teams was launched. It was an opportunity to invest in a new generation of pioneer missionaries. We sent teams to Central America and West Africa. Today one of the Mercy Teams in Nicaragua has become the regional center for Mercy Teams in all Central America. Then in January 2001 as JoAnn & I waited on God speak to us about the new year and our future He said "Tim remember the vision?" I knew what vision He referred to, it was the one He had given me at age 20 when I saw Africa & Asia. God then said "It’s time for Asia". So...

2002 & Beyond: Age 46: God is sending us back to Kona, HI where we began 25 years ago and went on to minister into Africa and 30 other nations. But this time it’s serving from Kona into Asia. So in July we will relocate to YWAM's Asia missionary Training Center, called the University of the Nations, Kona, HI. Our vision is to help mentor this next generation of missionaries.