I am a husband to my “yellow rose of Texas,” Julie, father to four lovely daughters, Leah, Elisha, Lori and Shamar, father-in-law to Andy (Leah’s husband) and Bryan (Elisha’s husband), and grandfather to four really good guys and two breath-taking girls, Benjamin, Zachary and Lillian (Elisha’s children) and to Jackson, Trevor and Sylvia (Leah’s children). I am also the pastor of Fellowship Evangelical Covenant Church, Hudsonville, MI. I’ve been in pastoral ministry since 1975 with a 2 year stint on the Bible and Theology faculty at Moody Bible Institute and several years mentoring pastors in eastern Europe.

As a cross-cultural pastoral mentor, I travel to Ukraine at least twice a year for 2 to 3 weeks at a time. Working with young local church leaders, primarily in western Ukraine, I listen to, train and mentor, and offer personal counsel to passionate and visionary young leaders. Because of relational breakdown between older leaders (who served under and survived communism) and the younger leaders who serve in remarkable freedom I have the neat opportunity to be an older voice, which is highly needed and regarded in Ukraine.

I hold degrees from Moody Bible Institute (B.A. in pastoral training with Greek language emphasis), from Dallas Theological Seminary (Master of Theology in Old Testament and Semitic Languages) and from Fuller Theological Seminary (Doctor of Ministry in the History and Practice of Christian Spirituality).

I have a great passion to see people experience Christian formation in the context of a missional community. I am fascinated with Jesus as he is revealed in the Gospels. Jesus is the most unbelievably courageous and deeply compassionate person to ever live. God’s desire is to see us transformed in the likeness of Jesus, and as we are, we become truly and fully human. I am stunned when I reflect on the fact that in Jesus of Nazareth, God visited this planet.

I’ve written two books: Jesus the Pastor: Leading Others in the Character and Power of Christ (Zondervan: 2000) and Out of Print: A Novel (Credo Communications: 2007).

Lastly, I enjoy reading (with an interest in Ernest Hemmingway), writing, gardening with Julie, golfing and watching good movies and talking about them with friends. My dream car is a 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air, 2 door (no post) hard top with a 283 or 327 engine with Hurst 4 speed, dual exhaust, with positraction. His favorite food is veal Parmesan with a nice red wine.

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