Pr Aubrey-John de Villiers, or Pr AJ as he is affectionately known, currently serves as the Western Region Director for Youth Ministries, Public Affairs and Religious Liberty and Music Ministries.
Early Life and Conversion
Aubrey-John de Villiers (AJ) was born on 13 December 1985 in Springs, Gauteng, located east of Johannesburg. AJ was named after his father. He was born as the eldest of two children to Aubrey-John and Charmaine de Villiers. His father is a businessman who is a jack of all trades and his mother works as a bookkeeper. AJ’s younger sister is named Charnel de Villiers.
Aside from being born in Springs, AJ spent his childhood growing up in Nigel which is also in Gauteng, and then in Dundee and Vryheid in Kwa-Zulu Natal before moving to Somerset West in the Western Cape where he began his schooling. AJ attended Helderberg Primary School and then went to Parel Vallei High School where he completed his high school career and matriculated in 2004.
AJ was an inquisitive young person and went through the baptismal classes five times before finally making a decision to be baptized. He was baptized by Pr Gustav Van Niekerk at a Camp Meeting in Hartenbos on 10 April 2004 and was received into the membership of the Helderberg College SDA Church.
Education and Marriage
AJ attended Helderberg College where he completed a Bachelor of Theology: Biblical Studies degree. He graduated from Helderberg in 2010. He later also did postgraduate studies in theology, majoring in youth ministries, at Stellenbosch University, and graduated from there in 2017. AJ is still furthering his education and is currently enrolled with the Adventist University of Africa, located near Nairobi, Kenya, where he is studying a Master of Arts in Biblical and Theological Studies. AJ expects to graduate at the end of 2024.
AJ married Eunice (Fürstenburg) de Villiers on 28 October 2018 in Stellenbosch. Eunice also studied a Bachelor of Theology at Helderberg College. She loves fitness. She’s worked as a fitness instructor, youth pastor and currently works as a virtual teacher for children aged 1 to 6 years old in China. From their happy union is born one precious daughter named Mia-Jane de Villiers. Mia-Jane was born in 2023.
Ministry
AJ attended Abundant Life after school where he experienced the greatest impact on his life which shaped him for full-time ministry. Abundant Life is a non-profit organization founded by Pr Heino Torlage in 1994 which offers programs that train young people for active service for God. AJ also appreciates his parents for their influence in shaping his character and for exposing him to various aspects in life.
AJ is quite the sport and enjoys being active. The sports he most enjoys include surfing, soccer, cricket, snake-boarding, hiking, skateboarding and mountain climbing. AJ believes that these sports also had a great impact on his life and personality.
Upon graduating from Helderberg, AJ went back to Abundant Life where he served as a missions leader and also briefly worked in the Northern Natal District of the Kwazulu Natal-Free State Conference from 2011 until 2013. He then relocated to Somerset West in 2015 where he worked as the Youth Pastor/Chaplain at Helderberg College Church until the end of 2016. He then accepted a call from the Cape Conference to serve as a district pastor of the Northern Suburbs District, where he served as a ministerial licentiate from 2017 until 2018.
At the Cape Conference Business Session which took place in Bloemfontein in 2018, Pr AJ was elected as Youth Ministries Director for the Western Region, a position which he has actively served in since then. Pr AJ is passionate about Youth Ministries as evidenced by his accomplishments during his tenure as Youth Ministries Director and the love and support he receives from young people and youth ministry leaders. He is also very passionate about biblical studies.
Pr AJ has the following message to share with our readers:
If we are not reading and studying the Word of God, we will not be the church that is leading the world closer to Christ. We need to study and be challenged by the Word so that our lives can be transformed into the characters that the Lord desires us to be. Study the Word of God so that the world can be transformed by your influence. Go into your inner room and shut the door, open the Word of God and allow it to challenge your status quo. Allow the Lord to speak to you through His Word so that your life can be changed into something great, for by reading the Word, you will be able to lead the church and the world into all truth.