C HRISTMAS has a different meaning for individuals across North Devon. For the Rev Steve Robinson, the minister at Westward Ho! Baptist Church, Christmas is a time to give thanks, reflect and "think about what we can give rather than what we receive".

There was a time however, when Steve was too busy "taking" instead of "giving" but all that changed after he met his wife Christine when he was 18.

Steve grew up in a relatively poor working class family in a village in Cambridgeshire and wanted to escape the poverty trap and create a better life for himself. He was fortunate that he was an academically bright young lad and smart enough to realise that education was one way create a better life.

Steve was determined to gain entry to Cambridge University to study for a degree. When he passed his 11-plus and started at Cambridge Boys High School, he spent the next seven years putting all his energies into studying towards his goal. All his hard work paid off. He passed his A- levels with flying colours and then went on to pass the entrance exam with a scholarship to Cambridge to study Geography.

On December 6, 1976, two days after receiving a telegram from the University confirming his place, Christine invited him to attend a church youth meeting at London's Royal Albert Hall. Steve went along to the meeting to humour Christine, as he had no particular interest in church.

However, that evening Steve had a life changing experience, which was to shape his future life. "At the meeting I suddenly had a real strong conviction that God had much bigger plans for me than the ones I had for myself. I knew, contrary to what some people had said about me, my background and my past, that I was special to God. I knew that Jesus had not just died for the world, he had come to set me free too," said Steve. After the meeting, Steve had a real desire to understand what the Bible was all about and learn more about God's will.

In 1977 he was confirmed into the Anglican Church and started attending church on a regular basis with Christine. They married in 1978 when Steve was 20 and Christine was 19. Moving with his job and after their three children Carolyn, Emma, and Sarah arrived, they started attending the local Baptist Church because it was very "child friendly".

Steve carved out a career in the finance industry and after working for 15 years for the Nationwide Building Society he ended up in a high powered position as head of a subsidiary company. In 1995 Steve started working as a management consultant in the City, but although he felt professionally fulfilled he still felt there was something missing from his life and decided to give up his career and study theology with a view to becoming a minister. As well as studying for his theology degree at Spurgeon College in London, where he commuted three days a week on his motorbike, he worked as a part-time Baptist Minister in Rushden, the market town in Northamptonshire where he and the family lived.

Despite a huge drop in income, Christine and their children supported him in his decision to become a minister. Steve heard about an opening for a Baptist minister in Westward Ho! and drove to Devon in October, 1999, to meet the leaders of the Church.

"I really liked the people and the area and remember preaching there for the first time on Remembrance Sunday in November, 1999," said Steve.

"I was quite fortunate because the leaders seemed to like me too and invited me to take up the position of minister when I qualified."

Steve moved with Christine and family in July, 2000, to take up his new position and now can't imagine being anywhere else. For Steve, the church is all about "community" and he tries to create an "extended family" which incorporates not only his congregation but the wider community in which they live relating it all to the Bible's teaching.

"Our church embraces people from every walk of life and that's what makes it real. The church is central in building communities, respect, a sense of purpose and most importantly a sense of hope — these are exactly the values which Christ preached and lived," said Steve.

Although Steve embarked on a life of ministry at a late stage in his life he believes his life experiences have given him a much better understanding of how he deals with people. "There were times in my young life when I remember being publicly humiliated by people in authority and although the pain of those memories has faded over the years they are still present but have taught me not to judge anyone," he said.

"Accepting, encouraging and giving people hope is a much more rewarding for me."

Now aged 51, Steve is hugely grateful for his faith, which has helped him through life. "Bad things have happened in my life but my faith helps me to respond to all sorts of situations: I know Christ is with me."

Steve is looking forward to this year's celebration of Christmas with Christmas services at St Margaret's School in Northam, where he is a governor; a carol service in Kingsley Hall, Westward Ho!; a nativity celebration at the BIG Sheep, and a Reflective service on the eve of Christmas.

He is especially looking forward to the service at the Baptist Church on Christmas morning to celebrate the real meaning of Christmas and to have fun with the children. "I generally ask the children what they got for Christmas and I never know if I am going to be squirted by a water pistol or knocked over with a remote control car, but it is all good fun and after all Christ wanted us to have fun in life."

Steve's simply philosophy on Christmas is one we might all consider this year and instead of putting the emphasis on what we receive we should perhaps focus on what we can give. As Steve quite rightly points out "giving does not have to be costly and love, respect and care costs nothing".