About our Movement
Australian Christian Churches is a movement of Pentecostal Churches in voluntary cooperation. Each individual church is self-governing, but commits itself to work together with other churches in the movement for the purpose of mutual support and the spread of the gospel in Australia and the world.
The Assemblies of God in Australia was formed in 1937 and has experienced consistent growth. It adopted a new name of Australian Christian Churches in 2007 and currently consists of over 1,000 churches with over 350,000 constituents, making it the largest Pentecostal movement in Australia.
In our churches you’ll find vibrant, contemporary Christians who love the Lord Jesus Christ and express that love in lively praise and worship and in caring relationships. Australian Christian Churches are Bible-loving, evangelical and Pentecostal, and are about connecting people to Jesus Christ.
Our History
Our History
The Australian Christian Churches (formerly called Assemblies of God in Australia) was formed in 1937, and is unique among Christian movements in the world in that we are unable to trace our origins to any human leader.
Australian Pentecostalism in the early decades of the 20th century was greatly influenced by such figures as Mrs. Janet Lancaster, AC Valdez, Smith Wigglesworth, C L Greenwood and P B Duncan but none of these were individually responsible for the formation of the Assemblies of God in Australia.
The Assemblies of God in Australia formed out of a conference of the Assemblies of God – Queensland and the Pentecostal Church of Australia in Sydney, Easter 1937. It was recognised by the leaders of both movements that a more harmonious, co-operative and unified relationship was needed. C.L Greenwood was elected the first Chairman of the Assemblies of God in Australia and every state was granted autonomy in its own affairs as was each registered assembly. In the early years of the movement growth was very slow but firm foundations were set in place.
In 1948 the Commonwealth Bible College was established in order to train men and women for ministry.
Various leaders also arose to bring leadership and direction to the movement such as Henry Wiggins, Philip Duncan, Edward Irish, James Wallace, Alec Davidson and Ralph Read.
In 1977, when Pastor Andrew Evans became the General Superintendent of the Assemblies of God in Australia, the movement experienced great growth, multiplying by over 13 times in the number of members and adherents and planting over 700 churches.
In May 1997 Pastor Brian Houston was elected the new National President of the Assemblies of God in Australia, and under his leadership, the movement continued to grow and expand its influence into the 21st century. It was renamed the Australian Christian Churches in April 2007.
Pastor Wayne Alcorn was elected the new National President by the National Conference in April 2009.
Pastor Joel Chelliah was elected as the new ACC National President in April 2025.
Today, the ACC represents over 1,100 churches and more than 385,000 believers across Australia.
OUR EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP
STATE PRESIDENT
DAVID HALL
Pastor David Hall, along with his wife Donna, is the senior pastor of Revival City Church; a dynamic and growing church in Adelaide’s North East. He has served as a State Executive Member for ten years and as State President since December 2021. David has been in full-time ministry and credentialed with the ACC since 2007. He was elected to the ACC National Executive in April 2025. David has a passion for the supernatural power of God and travels the world holding meetings with people being changed by the power of the Holy Spirit. David and Donna have two sons.
STATE VICE PRESIDENT
ROB SANTOSTEFANO
Pastor Rob Santostefano is the Senior Pastor at One Heart Church and also the ACC West Coast Regional Leader. Rob loves the Word of God and is a gifted preacher, inspiring people to live out biblical principles. He is passionate about empowering others to serve in the local church with a proven ability to build teams.
STATE SECRETARY/TREASURER
JOHN GRIFFITHS
John Griffiths has served on the South Australian State Executive since 2020 as Secretary/Treasurer and currently fulfils the role of the Safer Churches Officer in South Australia. Born into ACC, John loves everything that our movement represents. Currently, John pastors City West in Thebarton, which he planted over three years ago. The church facility also runs as a busy café seven days a week. John has four children, Zachary, Isabella, Micah and Emily, who are all involved in church life.
EXECUTIVE MEMBER
JANINE DONATO
Janine Donato serves as Campus Pastor at Futures Church, Salisbury and has been in full-time ministry for 25 years. She has served as a Pastor in various capacities and areas of ministry including: Women’s, Families, Creative, Missions and Community. Janine also served for 5 years as State Women's Pastor under the banner of ACW for ACC, South Australia.
Janine’s great passion is leading people to Jesus and encouraging believers to deepen their relationship with Christ through discipleship. She is a relatable communicator, passionate leader and dedicated pastor. Janine is committed to seeing people grow in all areas of life and does so with compassion, conviction and love.
Janine is married to Steven and they have 3 sons; Ethan, Harrison and Levi.
EXECUTIVE MEMBER
JOSH GREENWOOD
Josh Greenwood is the Lead Pastor at Futures Church, Australia, overseeing 8 campuses in South Australia, a Campus in Solo, Indonesia, part of Futures senior leadership team globally, and leads Futures Wellness Clinic and Fusion Event Centres.
In addition to serving on the ACC SA State Executive, he also contributes to the national direction of the ACC, particularly in Church Planting.
Previously, Josh was the Youth Alive Director of South Australia. He is a great communicator, a dynamic preacher and a relatable leader. He is committed to seeing people grow in all areas of their life, creating a great sense of family across all our campuses and doing both with passion, conviction and humour.
Josh is married to Sjhana and they have two sons, Jackson and Jordan.
EXECUTIVE MEMBER
SAM LONG
Together with his wife Hannah, Sam is the Lead Pastor of Nova Church in Adelaide, South Australia. Sam’s heart is to raise an army of strong disciples who will touch cities and nations for Jesus. He carries a deep hunger for God and ministers with a breakthrough anointing for the next generation. As well as Pastoring at Nova Church, Sam and Hannah also led Youth Alive South Australia from 2016-2023 and are the proud parents of three cute kids, Gabriel, Leo, and Shiloh.
EXECUTIVE MEMBER
IAN ZERNA
Ian Zerna and his wife, Yvonne, have been in ministry for 47 years. After pioneering the Barossa Church in 1977, they went on to plant the Gawler Church, (now Encounter Church) with 12 people in 1982. In 1992, they led the church into a property and building development program, including subdivisions, housing, a church building and acquiring a land bank for the future. The church grew to 700 people.
In 1997, they relocated to the Central Coast in NSW with their two daughters, Shaylee and Tamiya, to a church that was struggling, in debt, and without a permanent home. They led the church into purchasing land freehold and opened the first stage of a $5.5 million building in 2001.
In 2010, the church burnt down, and Ian redeveloped a $20 million building called the Impact Centre, with 5 business enterprises engaging with the community. Since then, the gym has become the largest in the area with 10,000 people visiting the location every week. Impact Church grew into a multisite church with 7 locations across Australia. In 2023, Ian transitioned the Impact Campuses to iSee Church based in Brisbane.
Ian and Yvonne have now returned to SA and are living in the Barossa Valley for their next season of ministry, focussing on coaching, building leaders and churches. Ian has a deep love for SA. He brings a message of faith, vision and leadership, and ministers with a prophetic edge.