Read About Our Pastor:

When did you come to repentance of sin and faith in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior?

In 1984 I was traveling in the car with my parents when we saw a car accident.  As we typically did, whenever we saw an accident, we prayed for God to work in the lives of those involved.   As we prayed, I began to think about what would happen if I were involved in an accident and were to lose my life.  This may seem like a morbid thought for a five-year-old, but in that thought God began to work in my heart, leading me to the realization that I was already dead in my sin.   I knew that I was not right with God.   I knew that I was a sinner in need of Jesus to make me right before God.   That same night, I repented of my sin and turned to Jesus Christ as my Savior.

Romans 10:9 says, “ if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”   My friend, if you have never come to repentance of your sins, putting your faith in Jesus Christ for salvation, I implore you to do so today.  

I am not sure what brought you to our website today.  Perhaps you are not even sure what you are doing on this website.  Maybe you are looking for a church to call home.  Maybe you stumbled upon our church by accident.  So many years ago God used an accident, an accident  in which I was not personally involved, to draw me to Himself.  Could it be that God is working in your life, drawing you to Himself and He is simply using this website to do so?  Whatever the case, I would love to hear from you.   Feel free to ask me questions and I will do my best to answer them from God’s Word.  If you have prayer requests or want to let me know how Christ is working in your life, feel free to share these as well.   You can reach me by clicking here.

When were you called to ministry and how long have you been a pastor?

For as long as I can remember there were only two things that I ever wanted to do with my life.  The first was to be a cowboy and the second was to be a preacher.   The former never became a reality, yet God has graciously allowed me to pastor.

I was ordained for ministry in 2008 at Hillside Baptist Church in Springfield Missouri.  Prior to pastoring Mt. Olive, I served on church staff at three other churches as a pastoral intern, a youth pastor and a children’s pastor.  In October of 2018, Mt. Olive called me as their pastor.

What about your family?

I met my wonderfully amazing wife Stacey while in seminary and we were married in 2004.   For those who think that being married to a pastor is easy, let me assure you that is not true!  I believe that being a pastor’s wife is a God given calling.  Stacey loves God with all her heart, which overflows into how she loves and serves our family first and then others.  There is no one I would rather serve alongside, than the wife that God has given me.

God has blessed us with five children: three girls, one boy and one who is with Jesus.  By God’s grace, each of our children have come to know Christ as their Savior and live in a way that pleases Him.  John says in 3 John 4, “I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.”  Of course, John was not speaking of physical children per se, but I can testify that there is no greater joy than seeing one’s physical children walking in truth. 

What about your education?

Out of high school, I attended Pensacola Christian College in Pensacola Florida, where I graduated with a B.A. in Bible.  Following Bible college, I attended Seminary at Baptist Bible Theological Seminary in Springfield Missouri, where I received both a Master of Arts in Biblical Counseling as well as a  Master of Divinity.

I am also a certified counselor with the Association of Certified Biblical Counselors (ACBC).