GRIFFIN, David, Rev (1946-2010)
Assembly memorial minute, 2011
David Griffin was born in Horsham in 1946. He had many happy memories of his childhood, growing up mainly in Horsham, Halls Gap and later Stawell. His father’s health was never good due to severe war injuries, and life was often unsettled, with numerous occasions of moving house and school. This disadvantaged his education badly and he spent the rest of his life overcoming it. David left school at 15, joined the merchant navy and then the Royal Australian Navy at 17 and served in the Defence Force until he was 21.
The unsettled years which followed were revealing a search for real meaning in his life, which he found when he became a Christian as a young man. The three chief influences in coming to faith in Christ were: military chaplaincy, Billy Graham’s preaching and Peter Marshall’s story. Eventually the Lord led David into the ordained ministry, another hard task with many hurdles to overcome, so it was a special triumph to be finally ordained into the Anglican Church in 1975.
Serving firstly at All Saints in Greensborough, his ministry years have been varied, including several Anglican parishes and also Outback Patrol in South Australia. He was welcomed into the Presbyterian Church in 1987, and inducted into the Sunshine Parish in 1989. Even after leaving here, it remained his “spiritual home” for many years.
Considering his early experience in the Navy it was not unexpected to see David enter the Defence Force again but this time as a Presbyterian Chaplain in the Army. Although he considered his move to Wentworthville in 1999 to be his last appointment, God directed his path to the Leigh Parish in 2004, and after 6 years’ ministry it was there, at the Shelford manse, that he died on 2nd October 2010, 3 months before his planned retirement.
Altogether David Griffin served as an ordained minister for 35 years. Undoubtedly his ministry touched many lives with the truth of the Gospel. Prior to coming to Christ he was a rebel and considered the black sheep of the family. The last 44 years of his life provide a lasting testimony to what the grace of God can do in the life of a lost sinner.
We extend the General Assembly’s condolences to his wife Margaret and their children. In the words of Paul to Timothy he fought the good fight, finished the race, kept the faith and now enjoys the crown of righteousness that was reserved for him.
Gender
- Male