Lansford was born in Freetown, Sierra Leone and served in the Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces for 20 years. In 2002 Lansford was commissioned as an officer and retired at the rank of Captain. In his final years in the Army he was Padre in Charge at the Joint Forces Headquarters and Deputy Forces Chaplain at the Ministry of Defence. Lansford is married to Grace, who is a nurse by profession, and together they have four children (all girls).

Lansford is passionate about Pastoral Counselling, Youth Work, Preaching and Evangelism. He gained a M.A. from the University of Manchester focusing on Mission and Evangelism and is looking forward to seeing what journey God has for Methodist Central Hall Westminster during his time here!