“Originally I am from Kumpuranta, a village near Savonlinna. I am married and father of a daughter. In spring 2024 I graduated from Agricola Theological Seminary (Espoo) with a Master of Theological Studies (MTS) degree. I am born in 1997 and my journey of faith began in 2017 through a full conversion from New Age spirituality and substance abuse.

My faith journey began in the Pentecostal Church of Savonlinna, and I am still grateful to those brothers and sisters who welcomed me with open arms. Soon after that I began my theological studies in Iso Kirja Bible College (Pentecostal). But after a couple of years, the academic discussions led me to see reformed theology as biblical, which resulted in a change of the denomination and I became part of the reformed churches.

For two years I served as a trainee at the Reformed Baptist Church of Oulu, Christ Church of Oulu, but after moving back to our home region in Eastern Finland my wife and I had to say good-bye to that beloved community in the north.

During our time in Oulu, my teacher Mikko Sivonen introduced me to the Oehrli missionary family, who were seeking and praying for a Finnish couple to help them establish a Reformed Baptist church. We had similar hopes and prayers. Things fell into place and so our collaboration in planting this church began in the spring of 2024 - close to the city centre of Joensuu."