Barbara Latkowski
Caledonia Courier
For Bruce Spinney, a new start in Fort St. James is something he is very much looking forward to.
As the new pastor at the Evangelical Free Church in Fort St. James, Spinney is excited to see the community of young couples and a church filled with toddlers and kids on Sundays.
“There’s a lot of great energy here,” Spinney said.
Spinney arrived to Fort St. James in March from Kimberly, B.C. where he was a pastor for 8 years.
He was born in Peace River, B.C. and has spent time in Fort St. John B.C., New Brunswick and Edmonton.
Recently, Spinney taught in India and Kenya for six years.
“I taught a variety of subjects from theology to philosophy,” Spinney said.
Having acquired many jobs throughout his lifetime including: teaching, nursing, and truck driving, Spinney always found his way back to his faith and to pastoral studies.
“My dad was a pastor so I grew up in the church. I always watched the job being done,” Spinney said.
But, later in life, Spinney walked away from his faith in his early twenties.
“I developed a negative perspective. But then something happened and I had a religious experience. This is what brought me back,” Spinney said.
After deciding to become a nurse in Edmonton, Spinney ended up in the seminary.
“I ended up with the expressed intention of never becoming a pastor. Of all of the careers on my list, this one was at the bottom.”
Spinney then found himself helping out a church in trouble. “By the end, they were doing very well. I went in kicking and screaming but found out soon later, that I loved it.”
And now, Spinney is dedicated to helping others find their faith.
“It’s my job to be a shepherd which can take on many forms. The first job is to build relationships and secondly, it’s about teaching by developing faith but always in the context of relationships, Spinney says.
“I desire to deepen these relationships in faith and knowledge and build close bonds in the community.”