ABOUT
Master of Arts, Ashland Theological Seminary
Doctor of Ministry in progress, Liberty University
My first book, Holy Shift, is an Amazon Bestseller and I'm currently pursuing my doctorate in Evangelism and Church Planting. I also serve as a Hospice Chaplain in our region as well as host the Church Growth Podcast.
I am focused on strategic leadership and engaging teaching, all fueled by a gnawing passion for reaching people far from God.
My unique ministry approach has been featured online in Time Magazine, USA Today, The Detroit News, MLive and The Washington Times.
Married twenty-four years to my high school sweetheart, I have five children that we have adopted plus a wiener dog with a nervous bladder.
My Top Posts
If you are new to my site, you might want to start with my most popular posts:
Top 5 Leadership Lessons I Learned While On-Staff at NewSpring
Two Unlikely Leadership Lessons from Conan O'Brien
Warning: Boring Preachers Can Actually KILL You!!
Adoption and the Gospel: God Wants You Around
The Role of Testosterone in Church Planting
Little Plastic Batman in Arizona
Assumptions about the Pillsbury Doughboy
FULL BIO
- Doctor of Ministry, Liberty University (in-progress)
- Bachelor of Arts, Columbia College
- Master of Arts, Ashland Theological Seminary
- Improv-Comedy Graduate, The Second City Training Center
- Improv-Comedy Training, ComedySportz
I started out by studying comedy under Tina Fey at The Second City in Chicago. I partied with Chris Farley two nights before he died and, as a result, got serious about my faith and making Jesus known.
After completing my Master's degree at Ashland Theological Seminary, I served as a youth pastor and experienced the depths of grace and compassion while serving orphans in the third-world villages of Africa.
I had the privilege of serving on-staff at NewSpring Church as part of the Executive Team overseeing the entire fast-growing church. It was my boss and friend, Perry Noble, who challenged me to do youth ministry for adults as a church planter.
Our first plant in north-east Ohio identified and trained many twenty-something leaders, releasing them into ministry through our successful merger with Western Reserve Grace Church. I'm very proud of them.
Turning our attention to Michigan, I became the pastor of Colwood Church where we saw 328 people receive Christ and 135 people go public through baptism over a two year period... all in a city of only 5,000 people.
In 2011, my wife and I felt the Lord call us into starting a new church for people who don't like going to church. On March 17, 2013, we held our first weekly worship experience for Life Church.
So much has happened since we launched this labor-of-love:
• hundreds of salvations
• hundreds of baptisms
• lots of weddings + baby dedications
• four adoptions in our family
• two additional Life Church campus launches
• COVID campus closures
• new friendships
• loss of friendships
• eleven Ministry Interns
• welcoming special guests to our Mainstage including Bob Goff, Perry Noble, and Blessid Union of Souls
• partnering with Converge MidAmerica and The Timothy Initiative to plant more churches
• indirectly helping launch two new churches in our region (!)
• experiencing 2 Timothy 4
• praying for Acts 2
• hosting two church leadership training events
• becoming 2019’s 11th fastest-growing church in America according to Outreach Magazine
• discovering new friends and new adventures together
I have been married to my high school sweetheart for twenty-four years and we are raising five amazing children (all adopted) in the High Five State.
