Quite simply we’re a group of people who love Jesus & want you to love Him just as much. At the moment there are 4 of us (& families) involved:
Rev. Wade McLennan
Rev. Wade McLennan studied for two years at Swansea Bible College from 1991-1993, and was pastor of Gabalfa Baptist Church, Cardiff from 1997-2007. He originally grew up in Chicago, USA and although he did not come from a Christian background, God was pleased to save him at the age of nineteen from a lifestyle of drugs and street life. Since then, God has dramatically changed his heart and life, giving him a passion for His word, and a heart for Biblical evangelism. Rev. McLennan began Banah Ministries in 2002, and he heads up the work that we do.
Simon Matheson
Having been brought up to go to church regularly, to get fully involved in Sunday school and youth clubs, Simon was saturated with the gospel from a very early age. He was also brought up to read his Bible and pray every day, which he did without too much struggle. However it wasn’t until he came to university that God opened his eyes to the fact that these things didn’t make you a Christian, and it was only by calling out to God, trusting in what Jesus did on the cross that you could be saved. After struggling through university, being saved near the end, God brought him through to a real place of assurance and freedom and after spending a year out with Gabalfa Baptist Church he joined Banah Ministries full time in 2003. He is married to Sarah, who is also actively involved in the church, and they have a daughter and 3 sons, Bethany, Noah, Joel & Micah.
Saeed Mokhlessi
Having been brought up in Iran as a devout Muslim, Saeed came to Britain in 2001. He providentially came into contact with an Iranian church, and through that contact he came to know Jesus Christ as his Saviour in 2002, shortly after moving to Cardiff. Since then he has become involved in the church here, and helps out regularly with the practical work involved in Banah Ministries, as well as working amongst people of his own language – Farsi. He has been married to Bethan since late 2007, and they have one son – Luca.
James Richards
James was brought up to know something of Christianity, but was not converted until his mid-twenties during his second stint at university. He had previously been in the marines for a number of years, but God led him to a place of seeking, and to cry out ‘God if you’re really there, you have to show me’. God met with him powerfully and set him free from many things in his life, and gave him a heart to share the Gospel as much as possible. James lives in Trevethin, Pontypool with his wife Naomi, and their Son Benjamin who was born in September 2008.