About Us
First and foremost, there is no us without Him. Jesus is the centre of our lives and our church, because He’s at the centre of all human history. He was sent by God to do what we could not do, and pay the price we could not pay. He not only died to carry our sin, but rose to life in order to give us His righteousness, and so the cross and the empty tomb of Jesus cast a shadow of love, grace and mercy over the entire earth. Our allegiance is firstly to Jesus, who will come again in glory, and He is the One we build our lives on. Just as our bodies need oxygen in order to have life, we need Jesus in order to do anything.
It’s clear that everyone who accepts this gospel message of salvation has only begun their journey, and needs to be part of a healthy family of believers who live out their faith together and show something of the character of God on this earth. He didn’t call us to live safe, secluded lives, but to be part of a family that grows together, lays down their lives for each other, sacrifices for each other and reaches out to the world around us. To this end we do not only want to see people being born again, but we want to make sure that we are all being disciples, bringing our gifts and abilities to build up others and growing up to be like Jesus.
In order to live in discipleship and to be able to build in different areas and regions, we function as one church with one heart, but made up of multiple congregations that each carry the structure and values of the church we see in the New Testament.
When we read the New Testament, we see that the gospel advanced not only through the preaching of the gospel, but through the concurrent planting of churches. Oxygen Life was planted out of a larger base church, and we ourselves have a history of sending people to establish plants or assist churches. If we’re aiming at being a healthy church, we should also aim at replicating that pattern in our own regions and across the world.
Click here for more information about those who’ve been sent from among us to plant churches in other regions.
In our modern age of church denominations and networks, we have to keep going back to the original pattern of relationships between churches, which essentially consisted of local churches working together in partnership with apostolic leaders to build healthy churches and plant new ones. There’s leeway to work within the framework we see in scripture, but it’s non-negotiable that we actually partner together – at least in spirit, even if we’re far from one another geographically. We are part of an apostolic partnership of churches called Four12. The name is derived from Ephesians 4:12, in which Paul states that the reason gifts are given to people is “to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up.” The aim is genuine relationships between churches that God has brought together, and a connection through the Spirit rather than simply under a common banner.
To find out more, or to partner with Four12, you can visit their website at four12global.com. You can also download the Four12 app to access free resources, or follow them on their social media channels for regular updates.
Lead Couple of Oxygen Life ↓
Brad and Angela planted Oxygen Life early in 2002, starting with twelve people and meeting in a coffee shop on a Sunday evening.
Today they continue to lead the church, heading up the team of leaders and overseeing the established congregations and various new plants.
Walmer AM Congregation ↓
Having been in ministry since February 2000, which was the year after they got married, Vince and Christine joined Oxygen Life in 2011 and now lead the Walmer AM congregation.
“We love that our Walmer AM congregation have become a family,” they say, “and that together we can grow into a people who please the Lord and advance the kingdom.”
Walmer PM Congregation ↓
Shaun and Sam fell in love while leading the youth together, and were married in 2012, which was the same year they joined the team as an eldership couple. In 2018 they began to lead the Walmer PM congregation.
“It’s been a privilege to lead and love such a wonderful group of people, and to serve Jesus together,” they say.
Western Suburbs Congregation ↓
Part of Oxygen Life since 2005 and married three years later, Eugene and Jess have been an eldership couple since 2012, taking over leadership of the Western Suburbs congregation in 2020.
“Western Suburbs are a group of people who are passionately in love with Jesus,” they say, “and who love each other with kindness and grace, and know how to have a lot of fun together as well!”
Summerstrand Congregation ↓
Craig and Lisa were a part of the original group of people who planted Oxygen, with Craig joining Brad and Ange as they were sent from Storehouse, and Lisa joining 5 months later.
They were married in 2005 and came onto eldership in 2009 in the Walmer Am Congregation, where they served faithfully until 2023, when they took over the leadership of Summerstrand Congregation from Ant Meek.
St Francis Congregation ↓
Ray and Kelly got married in 2006, and joined Oxygen Life in 2015. After serving as an eldership couple in the Western Suburbs congregation since 2019, they took over the St Francis congregation in 2022. “It’s been such a privilege to be asked to lead this amazing group of people and be a part of what the Lord is doing in St Francis and surrounding areas,” they say.
“We’re excited to grow together in greater love and devotion to Jesus, and to see a healthy New Testament church established.”
Jbay Congregation ↓
After getting married in 2003, and going into ministry shortly after, Brandon and Mandy have been faithfully serving God by using their gifts of worship and music to help restore people's hearts and point them to Jesus.
In 2022, while leading a community of believers in Jeffreys Bay, they heard God speak to them clearly about joining Oxygen Life and invested their lives with us. They took over the leadership of the Jbay congregation in 2023.
"It's been a joy to be part of the start of Oxygen Life JBay which is quickly becoming a place of healing and family."
Despatch Congregation ↓
Alf & Natalie got married in 1997 and have been part of church leadership since then. They joined JoshGen Mossel Bay in 2018 and later moved to Joshgen Hartenbos, where they served as an eldership couple.
In 2023, they were asked to relocate to Despatch to take over the Oxygen Life congregation there, to lead what God was doing among His people.
"We are very excited to see what the Lord is doing in and around Despatch and Uitenhage"
Plett Congregation ↓
Matthew Smith-Belton lived a life of drugs, theft and no care for God, but turned from his life of sin to follow Christ at the age of 20 and has been with Oxygen Life Church since. Matthew has been an elder in the church since 2022 and is currently in the Summerstrand congregation. He has been married to his beautiful wife Rachel since 2020 and they have a baby boy, Joe.
Follow us on our social media platforms to keep in touch and access more of our resources
