This is My Story

I was born in Fort Worth and grew up in Decatur, Texas. My wife Rachel and I have four boys (Seth, Andrew, Matthew, and Enoch). As a disciple of Jesus, I am passionate about spreading God’s Word and promoting the work of God’s Spirit to transform lives into the image of Jesus.

I serve as a Regional Director for Eastern European Mission (EEM). EEM publishes, prints, and distributes more than 1 million Bibles and Bible based materials annually, free of charge, in 30+ nations and in 20+ languages. I love to share the story of EEM and the way God is at work through this wonderful non-profit organization. I served on the President’s Council of Eastern European Mission from 2009 until 2016 and began working for EEM full time in 2022.

Since 2011, I’ve been teaching online courses for Harding University’s Center for Distance Education in Bible and Ministry. I teach Israelite History (covering Joshua-Esther) and a Capstone in Christian Ministry course. Through my work with Harding and Oklahoma Christian as an adjunct, I’ve had students from more than a dozen countries on six continents.

I also serve on the Board of Regents for NationsUniversity (an online Christian university). Rachel and I are very passionate about missions, and have been a part of mission efforts and visits in Zimbabwe, Slovakia, Italy, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Guyana (4 trips), Greece, Turkey, Israel, and the Dominican Republic.

I have a B.A. in Bible and an M.A. in the New Testament from Freed-Hardeman University, as well as an M.A. in the Old Testament from Harding School of Theology. I’ve completed all the course work for a D.Min. degree from Abilene Christian University. Rachel has a B.A. in Bible from FHU and an M.A. in Christian Ministry from Oklahoma Christian University. She is the Children’s & Youth Librarian for the Cleburne Public Library and is part of the writing team for Mosaic.

After leading singing and serving as an associate minister from 1990-1993, I preached full time from 1993-2022 for congregations in Adamsville, Tennessee; Conway, Arkansas; Mustang, Oklahoma; and Cleburne, Texas. We are members of Burleson Church of Christ in Burleson, Texas.

Fun stuff: I love music, playing guitar, songwriting, reading, being a Dallas Mavericks fan (MFFL!), Dallas Cowboys fan, and spending time with my family.

I love music, so I sing and play at various events and have since way back in the day. I’m a strummer not a picker, but I’ve had a lot of fun and have entertained folks in five states (nursing homes, restaurants, coffee houses, campus groups, elementary schools, faculty events, weddings, funerals, holiday parties, and birthday parties). No, I have not played at Folsom prison. Yes, I have played Folsom Prison Blues 1,000 times.

I’ll list below a sampling of some of the projects and publications to which I’ve contributed through the years.

A few of my hymns:

“Come Sing in Celebration” (Ps. 145) in Timeless: Ancient Psalms for the Church Today (Vol. 3) forthcoming by ACU Press; included on CD/released on iTunes and available on Spotify (2022)
“I Love the Lord Who Hears My Voice” (Ps. 116; co-written with Randy Daw); in Timeless: Ancient Psalms for the Church Today (Vol. 3) forthcoming by ACU Press
“Greater Than I Understand” (Ps. 138); in Timeless: Ancient Psalms for the Church Today (Vol. 3) forthcoming by ACU Press
“Refuge of My Soul” (Ps. 43) in Timeless: Ancient Psalms for the Church Today (Vol. 2) published by ACU Press (2013); released on iTunes (2019)
“How Precious Is Your Steadfast Love” (Ps. 36) in Timeless: Ancient Psalms for the Church Today (Vol. 1) published by ACU Press (2011); included on CD/released on iTunes (2017); performed by ACU A Cappella Chorus (opening night of Summit, 2016)

A few of my articles:

Review of the College Press NIV Commentary Series with Dr. Harold Shank for The Christian Chronicle (“Bible Commentary is Scholarly Yet Easy to Use,” Nov. 1, 2010)
Lead article for The Bridge newsletter of Harding School of Theology (“How Congregations Can Support Campus Ministry,” Summer 2005)
Articles in Power for Today, Church & Family Magazine, Adult Bible Quarterly, Gospel Advocate, newspapers, and other publications