Bobbie Houston
Encyclopedia
Bobbie Houston is a Pentecostal
Christian
pastor
in the Australian Christian Churches
. Bobbie Houston and her husband Brian
founded the Hillsong Church
in Sydney, Australia.
descent. At 15, Bobbie converted to Pentecostal Christianity. Bobbie met Brian when she was 16, and they married in 1977. The newly married couple moved to Australia in February 1978, serving at Sydney Christian Life Centre, Darlinghurst, under Brian's father, Frank Houston
. In the early 1980s, Brian and Bobbie started a church on the Central Coast, and a church in Liverpool
, both of which still operate today. In 1983, they moved to Sydney's north-western suburbs and hired the Baulkham Hills Public School hall to start a new church, Hills Christian Life Centre. The first service was held on Sunday 14 August 1983 and from an initial congregation of 45 people, is today the 21,000 strong Hillsong Church
. Today Hillsong Church comprises of four major worship centers (Baulkham Hills, Waterloo, Southwest Sydney
and Brisbane
) plus a citywide network of connect groups, extension services across the city, and growing congregations globally in London
, Kiev
, Cape Town
, Paris
, Stockholm
, Moscow
, Germany
and New York City
.
Bobbie has a desire to see value placed on womanhood, a passion that underpins the annual Colour Your World Women's Conference
, which she and the Hillsong team host in Sydney, London and Kiev annually. Since 1997, Colour, has been bringing a message of value, worth and dignity to women from around the world, encouraging and inspiring them to be all God has created them to be. Colour has also been a catalyst for mobilising thousands of women, moved with compassion and a heart for justice, to help poor and marginalised children and women in developing nations.
The Colour Sisterhood (previously Foundation 31) is a foundation set up by Hillsong Church
through Hillsong women, the women's ministry of the church. The foundation was established in 2001 and with the stated aim to "give support and aid to the hurting people of the world". At Colour Conference 2005, Houston launched the 'Adopt a home' project whose stated goal is for women to join together to raise funds and build homes for children in Uganda. Over 35 homes have been built to date.
Bobbie has written two books; "I'll Have What She Is Having" and "Heaven Is in This House".
Houston's three grown children, Joel
, Ben and Laura, also live in Sydney. Joel is a musician, a songwriter and is Hillsong Church's creative director.
Pentecostalism
Pentecostalism is a diverse and complex movement within Christianity that places special emphasis on a direct personal experience of God through the baptism in the Holy Spirit, has an eschatological focus, and is an experiential religion. The term Pentecostal is derived from Pentecost, the Greek...
Christian
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
pastor
Pastor
The word pastor usually refers to an ordained leader of a Christian congregation. When used as an ecclesiastical styling or title, this role may be abbreviated to "Pr." or often "Ps"....
in the Australian Christian Churches
Assemblies of God in Australia
Australian Christian Churches , also known as Assemblies of God in Australia , is a Pentecostal Christian denomination and the Australian branch of the Assemblies of God, the largest Pentecostal denomination in the world...
. Bobbie Houston and her husband Brian
Brian Houston (pastor)
Brian Houston is a pastor in the Australian Christian Churches. He is currently the Senior Pastor at Hillsong Church which has locations in Sydney and Brisbane, Australia, London, Cape Town, Kiev, Germany, Paris, Moscow, Stockholm and New York City. He was also the National President of Australian...
founded the Hillsong Church
Hillsong Church
Hillsong Church is a Pentecostal megachurch affiliated with Australian Christian Churches and located in Sydney, Australia. The church's senior pastors, Brian and Bobbie Houston, began the church in 1983 as the Hills Christian Life Centre in Baulkham Hills...
in Sydney, Australia.
Biography
Bobbie was born in New Zealand in 1957. Her father was Tongan and her mother was of ScottishScotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
descent. At 15, Bobbie converted to Pentecostal Christianity. Bobbie met Brian when she was 16, and they married in 1977. The newly married couple moved to Australia in February 1978, serving at Sydney Christian Life Centre, Darlinghurst, under Brian's father, Frank Houston
Frank Houston
Frank Houston , was a Pentecostal Christian pastor in the Assemblies of God in New Zealand and Australia....
. In the early 1980s, Brian and Bobbie started a church on the Central Coast, and a church in Liverpool
Liverpool, New South Wales
Liverpool is a suburb in south-western Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Liverpool is located 32 km south-west of the Sydney central business district, and is the administrative centre of the local government area of the City of Liverpool...
, both of which still operate today. In 1983, they moved to Sydney's north-western suburbs and hired the Baulkham Hills Public School hall to start a new church, Hills Christian Life Centre. The first service was held on Sunday 14 August 1983 and from an initial congregation of 45 people, is today the 21,000 strong Hillsong Church
Hillsong Church
Hillsong Church is a Pentecostal megachurch affiliated with Australian Christian Churches and located in Sydney, Australia. The church's senior pastors, Brian and Bobbie Houston, began the church in 1983 as the Hills Christian Life Centre in Baulkham Hills...
. Today Hillsong Church comprises of four major worship centers (Baulkham Hills, Waterloo, Southwest Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
and Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
) plus a citywide network of connect groups, extension services across the city, and growing congregations globally in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, Kiev
Kiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
, Cape Town
Cape Town
Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...
, Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
, Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
and New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.
Bobbie has a desire to see value placed on womanhood, a passion that underpins the annual Colour Your World Women's Conference
Colour Your World Women's Conference
Colour Your World Women's Conference is an annual Christian conference held in Sydney, Australia, hosted by Hillsong Church...
, which she and the Hillsong team host in Sydney, London and Kiev annually. Since 1997, Colour, has been bringing a message of value, worth and dignity to women from around the world, encouraging and inspiring them to be all God has created them to be. Colour has also been a catalyst for mobilising thousands of women, moved with compassion and a heart for justice, to help poor and marginalised children and women in developing nations.
Ministry
Bobbie Houston's ministry is mainly aimed at placing value on humanity. She runs the weekly women's ministry of Hillsong Church, The Hillsong Sisterhood. In 1997 Bobbie also started the annual Colour Your World Women's Conference, which attracts over 16,000 women from many different nations.The Colour Sisterhood (previously Foundation 31) is a foundation set up by Hillsong Church
Hillsong Church
Hillsong Church is a Pentecostal megachurch affiliated with Australian Christian Churches and located in Sydney, Australia. The church's senior pastors, Brian and Bobbie Houston, began the church in 1983 as the Hills Christian Life Centre in Baulkham Hills...
through Hillsong women, the women's ministry of the church. The foundation was established in 2001 and with the stated aim to "give support and aid to the hurting people of the world". At Colour Conference 2005, Houston launched the 'Adopt a home' project whose stated goal is for women to join together to raise funds and build homes for children in Uganda. Over 35 homes have been built to date.
Bobbie has written two books; "I'll Have What She Is Having" and "Heaven Is in This House".
Houston's three grown children, Joel
Joel Houston
Joel Timothy Houston is a musician, songwriter and pastor, best known as leader of the Sydney-based worship band Hillsong United, the youth worship band of Hillsong Church....
, Ben and Laura, also live in Sydney. Joel is a musician, a songwriter and is Hillsong Church's creative director.