|
Background: I was born in a small town in Minnesota but raised in the northern
suburbs of Chicago. I am an only child and I grew up a shy kid who
wanted nothing to do with anything religious. If you had told me then
what I would be doing now I would have told you that you were insane! I
believed in God but out of fear of being told I was not good enough, I
determined to stay as far away from Him as possible.
All of that changed, however, during my sophomore year of high school
when my friend invited me to attend his youth group. I first heard that
I could not be good enough but that Christ had taken my place on the
cross, so that through faith in Him, I could be forgiven and become a
child of God. It was there that I placed my faith in Jesus Christ as my
Lord and Savior.
|
God developed in me a love for the Scriptures and He began giving me
opportunities to serve in ministry, largely through playing the drums
for Sunday morning worship. By the end of my junior year, I knew that
God was leading me into full time ministry. This became the only thing I
could see myself doing for the rest of my life. With the guidance of
my youth pastor, I attended Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, IL where I
received my degree in Biblical Studies. It was there that I would meet
a beautiful and godly woman named Nina. We were married on 1/1/11
(which makes our anniversary brilliantly easy to remember.) After
Moody, God brought us to Texas so that I could attend Dallas Theological
Seminary to finish my Masters of Theology. Throughout it all, I have
remained involved in youth ministry in various ways and God has used
those experiences, alongside my studies, to cultivate a heart to see
youth come to know Christ and grow in Him.