I currently reside in Monroe, North Carolina serving as Senior Pastor of West Monroe Baptist Church with my gracious wife, Tracy, and two wonderful gifts of God, Elias and Erin.
Born and raised in East Tennessee, I served as a Sergeant in the United States Army as a Flight Medical Team Leader on UH-60 Blackhawk Helicopters, an Emergency Medical Team Leader in a Mobile Army Surgical Hospital (MASH), a Combat Medical Specialist in the 2nd Infantry Division, and a Drill Sergeant/Instructor and Infantryman for the 80th Training Division. After my military service, I worked as a Commercial Diver in Mobile, Alabama performing underwater construction, inspections, salvage and recovery, and ship husbandry before becoming a Southern Baptist Minister.
Born and raised in East Tennessee, I served as a Sergeant in the United States Army as a Flight Medical Team Leader on UH-60 Blackhawk Helicopters, an Emergency Medical Team Leader in a Mobile Army Surgical Hospital (MASH), a Combat Medical Specialist in the 2nd Infantry Division, and a Drill Sergeant/Instructor and Infantryman for the 80th Training Division. After my military service, I worked as a Commercial Diver in Mobile, Alabama performing underwater construction, inspections, salvage and recovery, and ship husbandry before becoming a Southern Baptist Minister.
I hold a Master of Divinity with Biblical Languages degree from
Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, a Bachelor of Business
Administration in Accounting from East Tennessee State University, and a Certification
in Biblical Counseling from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. I have served churches in Tennessee, Texas, South Carolina and North Carolina.
Personal Testimony and
Call to Ministry
Born and raised in North East Tennessee,
church, though prominent in the landscape of where I was raised held little
influence in my upbringing. Christian
values were ingrained in the social fabric of my community and my raising but
its source, the Bible and the church, were not used nor held in high regard for
my immediate upbringing. Except for the
occasional visits as a young child with my grandparents and the sporadic visits
for Christmas and Easter with my parents I was not raised in church.
Near the age of twelve I attended a church
revival where the preacher painted a very unappealing picture of hell and
proclaimed that those without a relationship with Jesus would burn forever. At
the invitation he stated that if anyone was not sure of their salvation they
should come forward or burn in hell. Not
wanting to burn and unsure of what to do, I came forward and after repeating a
few words I really did not understand, I was quickly informed after a handshake
that I was now saved. Nothing more was
said, no instruction, no follow-up, no expectations and no change.
It was many years later before I attended
church again. Around the age of 19 I
attended another church and after several visits I felt a draw to come forward
at the invitation. Not understanding
this tug upon my heart, I came forward and once more I was asked to speak words
I did not fully comprehend. Yet again,
no direction and no guidance were given.
I left as I had come; lost and worst of all I believed I was now right
with God.
While serving in the military and having
married, I sought to be a good husband and go to church with my wife on a
regular basis. Leaving the military at
27, I moved to Houston, Texas to attend school. While in Texas, a friend began speaking about reading
his Bible four times through and not being sure if he believed it. This was a turning point in my life that I
will never forget. Thinking and proclaiming
myself a Christian, I had never read the Bible and standing before me was a man
conflicted of whether to accept or reject the Word of God. A conflict within my own soul began…was I a
hypocrite or something worse.
With no biblical instruction I began reading
the Bible from Genesis. After nearly
completing the Old Testament, I found myself beaten, battered, bruised and
convicted by the very Law of God.
Condemned and broken, the Scriptures promised a hope for my affliction
in God alone. Frustrated and refusing to
read further, a seed planted long ago emerged…“Matthew, Mark, Luke, and
John.” Unsure of the meaning for these
names I searched the Bible. I discovered these men testified to the Gospel of
the Lord Jesus Christ and found that all the promises of God are fulfilled in
Him alone. Jesus, God Incarnate, the
very Son of God died for the sin I had committed that separated me from my God
and Creator. Through faith in His work
upon the Cross, Jesus rescued me from death and hell and promised me eternal
life with my Lord and my God.
Living for the first time for my God, and
seeking His wisdom, my wife and I were lead to Mobile, Alabama. Attending
Cottage Hill
Baptist Church
and flourishing in the Word I took my first step of true obedience as a child
of God in baptism and church membership.
Growing in the Lord and His Word, I sought to imitate the godly men the
Lord put before me in the examples set by preachers, teachers and the
like. It was during this time that the
Lord began working me toward another plan.
An opportunity to continue my education in 2000
lead to a return to Tennessee,
were we joined with my wife’s home church, Chinquapin Grove
Baptist Church. During this time the Lord allowed for an
opportunity to work with both middle and high school youth for two years, this
time of growth and study in the Scriptures confirmed a deep spiritual call to
vocational ministry. Seeking the council
of my wife and Pastor, both confirmed the Lord’s call in my life to the
ministry. In 2002 I publicly announced
my call before the church, where I preached my first sermon and was licensed to
the ministry and later Ordained to Ministry.
After completing my studies at East
Tennessee State University the Lord directed us to Southwestern Baptist
Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas were I completed a Master of Divinity
with Biblical Languages degree and a Certificate in Biblical Counseling. I have been privileged to serve my God and
His church as a Ministry Associate, Chaplain and now as a Pastor. My salvation experience and passing years of
ministry have developed a sincere desire to see the lost come to a saving
relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ and to see the body of Christ discipled
to full maturity in the Lord.
I praise God daily that He is still in the
business of saving lost souls and growing them to be just like His Son, Jesus
Christ. Until He comes may we be about
His kingdom work.