Who is your New CBG Chairman?
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An introduction to Dave Lock, Manager of Oasis Christian Bookshop and Christian Booksellers Group Chairman.
(Originally published in Together Progress Magazine, Mar/April 2025.)
Hi, I have been in Christian Bookselling for 38 years now, having previously managed Manna Christian Centre in Streatham for 36 years, & now the Manager of the Oasis Christian Bookshop in Wallington, with a great team of volunteers & trustees.
I have four amazing Children too Thomas, Hannah, Naomi & Rachel. All of which grew up in the Bookshop world too, helping and assisting their dad when required.
Before Bookselling I worked in Yacht & Motor-boat Insurance for a Lloyds Broker in the lovely West Sussex town of East Grinstead for 6 years, before helping run down the company.
I must also let you know that I am an avid Chelsea fan, and love sport in general. It’s been a large part of my life too. I have also been the Assistant Secretary of the Bromley & Croydon Christian Football League for over 25 years too. More about that later.
I want to share with you how God has been faithful throughout my life and give you some background to my story.
I was brought up in a Christian home off Brixton Hill- my parents became Christians at a Billy Graham Crusade in Haringey, London. (Anyone else here get saved at a Billy Graham Crusade?) At a young age we went to a Christian Children’s Bible camp called Bonsall run by the Church Army in Matlock in Derbyshire for a few years running which not only was extreme fun, but it also gave us a great grounding in the Christian Faith and where I first committed my life to Jesus along with 100’s more.
When we hit teenage years, we went with my dad (a blind Pastor) and the fellowship to do evangelism in the out skirts of Reading & Oxford, doing door to door knocking telling people about Jesus and inviting them along to a celebration service in the evening in the local Village Halls. What I call old school evangelism which I think is very rare these days.
I even got baptised along with 70 other people one day in a village called Three Mile Cross in Reading and my Baptism verse has been so key since, throughout my life- Isaiah 41 v 10” So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand”. This was another example of being grounded in the Faith and gave us so much confidence in sharing about Jesus to others.
During my Secondary School days, I experienced some tough times as a Christian, being bullied regularly, and when I headed up the tuck shop and resisted giving certain boys free sweets etc…. I would be met outside after closing the shop and pushed around in the corridors or lifts and bullied a few times. Tough times, but you know it was another test of my faith. The amazing thing later, which was miraculous, when I was working at Manna Christian Centre a couple of those bullies entered Manna as Christians, new to the faith, and had found Jesus in prison, and asked me for forgiveness as they asked for advice on various Christian Books and Bibles to help them develop their Faith too. Incredible what God can do!!
Moving on, my first job was in Insurance, insuring Yachts and Motor- boats for Lloyds insurance in a lovely town of East Grinstead. After six and half years, and running down the company due to some heavy claims and a total loss of a Marina in Sardinia, I was offered a new job at an Underwriters Box in Lloyds of London with a very good salary- but at the same time one of the Pastors of Streatham Baptist Church approached me to consider going into full-time Christian work and becoming the Manager of Manna Christian Centre in Streatham, which was started by the church. The Lloyds job was offering me three times the salary, and we were due to get married that year in May 1987, so a huge decision to make- the Lord led me to Start at Manna- a Big Faith step and one that took me through 36 years of my life, with no regrets.( My Mum had always wanted me to become a Minister to follow in my Dad’s footsteps, but I went into Full-Time Christian work instead, which still pleased my Mum.)
My Church life at Streatham Baptist Church has been very important too. In my 40 plus years that I have been there, I helped run the 7-11’s Kids groups, joined the Worship Group too as a drummer, and not looked back. I also joined the very successful Football and Cricket teams, captaining both teams and then taking on the secretary roles for many years. I even had the privilege of being on the church Leadership team as the Youth Deacon for a few years too. Speaking of drumming, I really enjoyed being part of the Worship Band at CRT with Ben Dunnett & the Blue Stripes and have also played in many shows and Pantomimes over the last 30 years and more.
There have also been many miracles in our life too. We were told a few years into marriage that it was going to be very difficult to have children. That brought a lot of heartache, but we continued to believe that God would give us a miracle, although there were times when we struggled with that. A wonderful Prayer Warrior & servant of God from our church, Chrystella, spent a lot of time praying with Angela, my Wife through some very dark days too. Angela was working for a BBC correspondent as a nanny in those days, and they even offered to pay for IVF. We did pursue that in the end, but the day we went to the hospital to start the treatment, the Consultant couldn’t believe it when he checked the scan, that Angela was already pregnant! Chrystella had prayed and prophesied just before that that we were not only going to have a child, and the first will be a Boy, that others would follow, and so our first miracle child Thomas was born in 1994. Followed by Hannah two years later, and then Naomi in 2000, and an extra bonus Rachel in 2005. Four beautiful miracles! Rachel is in the 2nd year at Lincoln Uni, studying Dance. Thomas & Hannah got married after Lockdown to Arrianne and Ollie respectively.
Our Housing- Another Major Miracle
Over 20 years ago we were going to be homeless after moving from rented house to rented house for several years. It was decided that we were going to have to split up as a family during the week and me see them all at weekends after continuing to work at Manna. So, Angela & the kids would move to Norfolk (Mother in Laws), and I would stay in London with a member of the Church during the week and go up to Norfolk at weekends. It wasn’t a great idea, but seemed the only solution- UNTIL one of our former Pastor’s Don attended a Conference in London where a Christian Housing Association were present and doing a presentation about how they help full time Christian workers in London get accommodation in 50/50 House shares etc…… Don had a conversation afterwards and explained to them about our situation, and to cut a long story short found out that we were PRIME Candidates. We were rescued due to a chance meeting of Don with Amersham Christian Housing who are now called Mission Housing having recently joined up with another Association.
We have had 3 houses now with MH- One in Streatham, Thornton Heath and now Selsdon South Croydon in over 20 years, and by God’s grace been able to keep the work of Manna going, and now in the last 18 months, Oasis Christian Bookshop in Wallington- GOD IS FAITHFUL AND AMAZING!!!
I need to be honest here -It hasn’t always been plain sailing though- marriage hasn’t been easy in 37 years with all the highs & lows of the things that have happened, and especially financially, I acknowledge that there has been times of weakness and failure to live God’s way all the time. Through God’s Grace I have received restoration and forgiveness, and you can too if you have had tough times and need the Lord’s guidance and help too.
GOD ANSWERS PRAYERS- In weakness He gives us and shows us Strength! Let me encourage you to open your life more and more to God, and He will bring you Peace, Love, Strength, Joy, Comfort & will help you to be used further to bless others. GOD’S FAITHFULNESS SHINES THROUGH! ALWAYS TRUST IN GOD, BELIEVE IN GOD AND DON’T LOSE THAT GOD FOCUS!
I remember at a Prophecy conference many years ago having the following prayed over me.
“Many doors will be opened for you throughout the coming years, many lives will be touched through your ministry through scriptures and Christian Literature,” and this has surely been true in 37 years of Christian Bookselling. There are many stories to share, and it is always great when a customer returns to the shop and tells us how a book we recommended had changed their life.
As I reflect on my years, I thank God for his faithfulness in helping us financially, with housing and support for the family, but also providing miracle after miracle of customers being touched by God’s word and sales of many books that have influenced and guided so many people over the years.
I have also enjoyed being used in so many ways in bookselling, helping and advising other Booksellers and encouraging them in their own ministries, and extremely privileged in being asked for the second time to become the Christian Booksellers Group Chairman again back in September 2024. If you feel the call to join us on the Committee don’t hesitate to contact me or any other of the Group members. Also, in 2018 at CRT I was amazingly surprised and blessed by being awarded the Christian Store Manager of the Year. One of my Big Highlights in Bookselling!
As I conclude, I want to encourage you all that God is always there through the good times and the to…. times and to remember Isaiah 41 v 10, do not fear, do not be dismayed, the Lord will strengthen you, uphold you, and help you, and that he will never let you go….you are in the best occupation………. God is Faithful!
P.S as I finish, I have just been amazingly blessed by my eldest daughter Hannah by informing me that I am going to be a Grandad for the very first time later in the year…….
Dave Lock Manager of the Oasis Christian Bookshop in Wallington and Christian Booksellers Group Chairman.