My Story
Becoming a Christian and Minister
At age 8 my family moved to Kentucky from Indiana. A lady across the street put me on a visitation list at her local church. Soon, two young guys came by and shared the gospel with my family. Shortly thereafter, I became a Christian.
I began attending that same church every time it opened its doors. I went by myself, as my parents never took faith very seriously. We moved multiple times but I continued to go to church on my own. It was many a new town where I looked in the phone book, called a local church and asked if they had a bus to pick me up.
During high school a friend asked me to visit his church and later go to church camp. Camp had an amazing effect on me. When we got back I instituted Bible studies at our high school and the junior high school. It was during this time I began preaching, speaking at age 16 at a jail during a visit from our church camp.
At 19 I entered Bible college and immediately began preaching and doing youth ministry in various churches near Cincinnati in the early 90's. After a few years, I left college and attempted to enter "normal life" working in my home town. Professional ministry seemed to have very little to do with the church of the New Testament, so I decided it was not for me. My sense was, if we are going to do church, we needed to follow the New Testament teaching on actual church work. Instead churches seemed to be more interested in "growth strategies" and exalting "super pastors."
God still seemed to have a calling for my life and because my coworkers kept telling me "You should be a preacher" I looked into it again. This time, I decided to only work with churches that wanted to return to the New Testament order. Thus began a ministry in rebuilding small congregations. I have assisted with church splits, churches with no youth or young adults, liberalism, legalism, Elderless churches, music wars, "wolves", immorality in the leadership, and apathy.
With each experience I’ve had differing levels of success yet gained more and more wisdom. When I offer a suggestion to a church, it is for good reason, not an untested theoretical.
I began attending that same church every time it opened its doors. I went by myself, as my parents never took faith very seriously. We moved multiple times but I continued to go to church on my own. It was many a new town where I looked in the phone book, called a local church and asked if they had a bus to pick me up.
During high school a friend asked me to visit his church and later go to church camp. Camp had an amazing effect on me. When we got back I instituted Bible studies at our high school and the junior high school. It was during this time I began preaching, speaking at age 16 at a jail during a visit from our church camp.
At 19 I entered Bible college and immediately began preaching and doing youth ministry in various churches near Cincinnati in the early 90's. After a few years, I left college and attempted to enter "normal life" working in my home town. Professional ministry seemed to have very little to do with the church of the New Testament, so I decided it was not for me. My sense was, if we are going to do church, we needed to follow the New Testament teaching on actual church work. Instead churches seemed to be more interested in "growth strategies" and exalting "super pastors."
God still seemed to have a calling for my life and because my coworkers kept telling me "You should be a preacher" I looked into it again. This time, I decided to only work with churches that wanted to return to the New Testament order. Thus began a ministry in rebuilding small congregations. I have assisted with church splits, churches with no youth or young adults, liberalism, legalism, Elderless churches, music wars, "wolves", immorality in the leadership, and apathy.
With each experience I’ve had differing levels of success yet gained more and more wisdom. When I offer a suggestion to a church, it is for good reason, not an untested theoretical.