This is My Story

I was born in Fort Worth and grew up in Decatur, Texas. My wife Rachel and I met in Greek class, fell in love, and married in 1990. We have four boys (Seth, Andrew, Matthew, and Enoch).

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’m currently pursuing 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. We’ve ministered in Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and now live in Cleburne, Texas where I preach for the Westhill Church of Christ.

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 served on the President’s Council of Eastern European Mission from 2009 until 2012, and still try to promote it whenever I get the chance. I love their mission and motto: “The Bible. We Want Everyone to Get It.” Rachel and I are very passionate about missions, and have been a part of mission efforts and visits in Zimbabwe, Slovakia, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Guyana (4 years), Greece, Turkey, Israel, and the Dominican Republic. My primary calling is preaching and teaching God’s word to promote the work of the Spirit of God to transform lives into the image of Christ and welcome the kingdom.

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’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:

“I Love the Lord Who Hears My Voice” (Ps. 116; co-written with Randy Daw); “Greater Than I Understand” (Ps. 138); and “Come Sing in Celebration” (Ps. 145) 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