The Press and Journal (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire)
OILMAN WHO GAVE IT ALL UP FOR GOD
FOR RICHER FOR POORER
George Booth stood in a busy plaza in Rome, a million thoughts going through his head, and looked to God for help. “Right God, do something only you could do that I can make sense of,” he said.
He didn’t realise at the time how much these words would change his world.
As a youngster George Booth grew up in Gardenstown in the north-east and attended Banff Academy. It was a friend’s dad who gave him his first taste of life in the business sector.
“He asked me to sell burglar alarms around Gardenstown when I was 15 and I caught the bug,” he said.
“My first taste of professional sales was when I sold gravestones for A&J Robertson, then I got into freight forwarding. At its core, business is about relationships and I try to be relational in everything I do, so sales, negotiations, building and leading teams came very natural to me.”
In 2003, he joined Pentagon Freight Services PLC as regional business development manager before working his way up to director, gaining overall responsibility for Pentagon Aberdeen, Glasgow and Newcastle.
During his time working in Aberdeen, George became one of the best-known figures within the business world, serving on Pentagon’s UK PLC board and garnering a reputation as someone with a key skill for building and maintaining relationships.
Seven years later, he would move to Houston, Texas, to become senior vice president of Pentagon. From there, he jointly led Pentagon’s Americas business and was responsible for offices from Dallas to Rio de Janeiro and Buenos Aires.
“I guess I was moving to America to live the dream,” the 43-year-old said.
But something was stirring inside George, something which would make him reconsider his future. Both him and Pentagon decided it was time for a change and he left the business by mutual agreement, selling his shares in March last year.
“I'd had a restlessness for some time and felt God stirring something new but I didn't want to rush to any decision,” he said.
He had plenty of offers – but he was unsure of which direction to take next. It was this uncertainty that led him to ask for God’s guidance while on a family holiday in Italy. Religion has always played a big part in George’s life – although he wouldn’t consider himself religious.
“I was brought up by Christian parents and can't remember a time when faith wasn't part of everyday life,” he said.
“I made it my own at age 15 at a Christian Youth Camp and as with every relationship, there have been key milestone moments along the way where my relationship with Christ has deepened.
“I hope I'm not religious and anyone who knows me I don't think would describe me as such. But relationship with Christ – yes to that.”
It was a Thursday that George asked for a steer from the higher powers and on the Sunday night he went to an elders meeting at his church where he was asked to put himself forward for a role.
By the following Wednesday everything had changed and he was out of the business world.
“I thought: ‘Okay God, that was quicker than I expected!’
CHURCH PROJECT
“I'd been involved with Church Project since we moved to Houston and the positional need at the church tied in perfectly with my departure from Pentagon, so while that wasn't the only factor, God's timing was perfect to clear the way for me to step into what I can only describe as a calling.”
This wasn’t the first time it had been suggested he would join a church. In fact, when the idea was first put to him some years previously, he admits that he laughed it off.
His pastor back home had once predicted that his move stateside would eventually lead him to one of America’s famed ‘mega churches’, where the congregation can stretch into the thousands. George was well known for his relational skills and leadership but stadium-sized sermons felt like another world away.
“When I moved to the states, it was to make money. Have fun. Grow the business. I couldn't have traced a path from those dreams and business drive to where I am now,” he said.
“John Merson, who said that, must have seen something in me or my trajectory that made him say that. It was also probably his wise counsel to keep my focus on the bigger picture.
“By the time I decided to take on the role at Church Project, it was a no brainer.”
The position with Church Project was as Pastor of Development. His work with the large-scale nondenominational church group involves partnering with organisations that are involved in a range of projects from building new schools and church centres in Malawi to helping finding homes for local orphaned children.
He found himself supporting around 20 ministries and regularly meeting congregations of more than 2,000 people, with thousands more following the project in different locations throughout the US and around the world. George doesn’t have to preach often in his role but manages to handle the pressure when he does.
He said: “At Church Project we let the bible drive the message, so in some ways that takes the pressure off trying to be clever or wordy with sermons. When we're trying to expose God's word instead of push our ideas or agendas, there's a freedom in that. But also pressure because when we speak, people listen so we need to get it right.”
The group itself takes an approach that many might not associate with the image of so-called mega churches, instead focusing their resources on giving back rather than huge facilities or flashy performances.
It is a message that rang true for George at a time when he was reevaluating what really matters in his life. With lucrative offers on the table, he decided instead to chase spiritual fulfilment rather than the largest pay cheque.