I am a shepherd leader who values expository preaching, an every member word ministry (Eph. 4:12-16), and a Christ-centered / Gospel-centered approach to teaching and ministry. I desire to see the church gather in authentic community, under the preached Word, and then scatter “on mission” to proclaim the gospel to their neighbors and the nations. I desire to see leaders raised up to serve their home church, plant churches, and heed the call to international missions.

Below you will find information about my ministry experience over the last several years, my biography, personal testimony, call to ministry, and philosophy of ministry.

RECENT EXPERIENCE

I most recently served as the Senior Pastor of Eastridge Baptist Church in Red Oak, TX. You can learn more about the church and its ministries by visiting our website Eastridgebc.com. You can also watch my weekly messages here. I served the church through preaching and teaching, leadership, administration, discipleship, and pastoral ministries. Eastridge Baptist Church seeks to be a church in community and “on mission” for Jesus making “disciple-making” disciples of all peoples. If you are interested in learning more about Eastridge Baptist Church, please visit their website.

BIOGRAPHY

• Birth – College | I was born and raised in Savannah, GA. After high school, I attended the University of Georgia, where I earned a BS in Biology in December of 2004. After receiving my degree, I moved to Atlanta and began a career in recruiting and sales.

• Corporate America – Marriage | After working in the Atlanta office (HQ) for 10 months, I was selected to assist in opening the companies first satellite office in Dallas, TX. Dallas was a blessing. Not only did it provide opportunity for career advancement, but it was where I met my beautiful wife. 16 months after our first date we were standing at the altar to be married. We have been married for 13 years now and have two sons.

• Seminary – Pastoring | In May 2009, we moved to Fort Worth, and I began seminary at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. I graduated with a Master of Divinity in December 2011. After seminary, I accepted a call to Sycamore Baptist Church in Decatur, TX, where I served as the Senior Pastor for almost 8 years.

• Doctoral Work | I have also completed a doctorate in expository preaching at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. My project was focused on how the Bible is connected together as one book that is centered on Jesus. You can view my project series here.

• Present | I recently served as the Senior Pastor of Eastridge Baptist Church in Red Oak, TX. You can learn more about the church and its ministries by visiting their website Eastridgebc.com.

TESTIMONY

When I was in high school, I attended church on a regular basis and a Christian school. Because of my familiarity with the Bible through church and school, I mistakenly thought I was a Christian. However, at the age of sixteen, after reflecting on the way I was living, and having multiple conversations with friends and my youth pastor, I came to understand that knowledge of God was not the same as being a follower of Him. I was a sinner, who was in need of a Savior. Rather than worshipping and glorifying God, I was actually living in opposition to Him. Looking back, I realize God, by His grace, had been working in my life to reveal Himself to me all along. It was at this time that God drew me to Himself, and I made Him both the Lord and Savior of my life. After that, I made a public profession of faith through believer’s baptism.

CALL TO THE MINISTRY

My call to ministry was a process that unfolded over the course of several years. Starting with an opportunity to teach a weekly Bible study and Sunday school class. While teaching these classes, and ministering to those who attended, God ignited a spark in me for ministry and a love for teaching others God’s Word. Gradually, I came to realize God was calling me into full-time ministry through my new found passion for teaching.

Realizing God’s call on my life, I sought the counsel of close friends and several pastors, asking them for prayer and advice. One piece of advice I received was to take a few seminary classes online. Studying the Bible in a seminary context was both a privilege and a blessing. It served to further burden my heart for others, and open my eyes to the need for solid Bible teaching in our churches.

After more prayer, finishing my online classes, and continuing to teach, I became convinced God was indeed calling me into full-time ministry. Those who had been praying with and for me, and watching these events unfold in my life agreed. After which, I enrolled at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, where I completed a Master’s of Divinity. I have also completed a Doctorate in Expository Preaching from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. I served as the Senior Pastor of Sycamore Baptist Church in Decatur, TX for almost 8 years. I also served as the Senior Pastor of Eastridge Baptist Church in Red Oak, TX for over 2 years. You can learn more about the church and its ministries by visiting their website Eastridgebc.com. Collectively, I have over 10 years + as a Senior Pastor and 15+ years of combined ministerial experience.

PHILOSOPHY OF MINISTRY

I believe every ministry should have the gospel at its center and should be chiefly about telling not only church members but those in the surrounding communities of the gospel’s power for salvation and sanctificatI believe every ministry should have the gospel at its center and should be chiefly about telling not only church members but those in the surrounding communities of the gospel’s power for salvation and sanctification. Every ministry should be Word based and birthed from the faithful proclamation of Scripture. The goal is an every member Word ministry where each member understands God’s Word and speaks God’s Word to others whether that be for salvation, encouragement, training, reproof, rebuke, or exhortation, so that disciple-making disciples are made. This is accomplished in a number of ways.

• First, all of our ministries should be focused on and tied to the faithful proclamation of the Word of God. The inspired and inerrant Word of God should be proclaimed weekly through Christ-centered expositional preaching. I see expositional preaching as the process of faithfully exposing a particular unit of Scripture, which includes presenting both its meaning and application to the congregation.

• Second, our churches should be mission-minded with a desire to reach both our own communities and the world with the gospel. We must live as missionaries in our own neighborhoods and cities, proclaiming the gospel to those we meet. In short, the church should be “on mission.”

• Third, our ministries must equip the entire body of Christ with a gospel-centered focus. We must consistently lead our people to the foot of the cross, showing them that the gospel both saves and sanctifies. Growth in Christ-likeness, then, can’t happen in our own efforts, rather it must come through the gospel, which exposes our idols and draws our affections to Christ.
  
  I believe the pastor’s job is not only to teach and encourage the congregation to make disciples but to lead out in making disciples himself. For the pastor, disciple-making is accomplished through a weekly pulpit ministry, small group ministries, and one-on-one counseling and discipleship. As the pastor invests in his people, his goal is not only to help them understand the Word of God more deeply but to help them apply God’s Word to their lives, so that they then can go and make disciples themselves in the surrounding community and within their spheres of influence.

• Finally, the pastor should be a man of integrity, who submits all his decisions to prayer and the Word of God. He should be committed to gospel-centered, Christ-exalting, expositional preaching that is grounded in the text. By faithfully adhering to the Word of God, his ministry will speak to the culture, and hopefully be culturally transformative, not just culturally relevant.

These goals have led to my current vision for Eastridge Baptist Church which is that

we seek to be a church in community and “on mission” for Jesus making “disciple-making” disciples of all peoples.

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