If any label beyond “Christ follower” fits me, it’s “pilgrim.”
- Hometown: Lincoln, Nebraska
- Children: 1 on Earth; 1 in Heaven
- Ministry focus: Preaching, equipping ministry, discipleship, missions
- Fun Fact: Believes that a campfire makes just about any conversation better.
If any label beyond “Christ follower” fits me, it’s “pilgrim.” Just when I think I’ve settled into a comfortable spot in this Christian journey, God leads me to a new experience that turns out to be a fresh way of shaping me to better serve Him.
I accepted Christ as my Savior at age 5. But as a young adult, I began to pursue a deeper commitment to Christian growth and realized that the Jesus of the Bible commanded us to love one another, not judge people with the self-righteous attitude I’d been showing for years.
As a young man with a good marriage and a healthy toddler girl, we realized that our second baby daughter had significant special needs, which taught me to trust in God’s sovereignty and to see the people in need all around me.
As I built a career as a magazine editor, I realized, like the author of Ecclesiastes, that worldly success still leaves a soul hungry for the satisfaction only God provides. That’s when God began turning my heart toward ministry through a variety of eye-opening experiences, beginning with a mission trip to South America. On that trip, I felt strongly convicted by the fact that I was willing to share the gospel in a foreign country, but I rarely shared the gospel in my own community back home.
God never quit working on my heart, and I eventually realized that the work I found most meaningful always revolved around teaching God’s Word and serving others. Sensing a calling to ministry, I followed a pilgrim’s path to seminary and, eventually, a call to serve at Lakeside.
My wife, Teri, and I are grateful that God has given us the chance to serve Him right here in our adopted home state of Iowa, where we can be near our oldest daughter, Alli; her husband, Noah; and our granddaughter, Dani. We daily anticipate our reunion with our daughter Katie in Heaven.