What is Your Story?
I was born and raised in Omaha, NE, and grew up going to Christ Community with my parents and older sister. I came to faith when my middle school pastor preached about baptism. There I realized that I trust in Jesus as Lord and Savior, and signed up to be baptized. Then I felt a call to be a pastor at 16 that was like a light switch, where the Spirit spoke in such a way that I just knew. This calling was confirmed over time by my youth pastor and others. I then finished a bachelor’s in pastoral ministry, married out of college, and started graduate work in Chicago. After two years of graduate work, I dropped out after my first wife had an affair and left. I moved back to Omaha and Lincoln for a year, and pressed into Jesus’ healing and rest.
Citylight Council Bluffs family, remember that Jesus redeems, and He completes the work He starts! My life is His resume of His faithfulness through it all.
After a couple of years of healing, I met my wife, Amy. We have been married for seven years now! Fun story, we were married February 1st, 2013, in the original Citylight building on 40th and Nicholas. We were on the core team, and our wedding day was the Friday before Citylight’s public launch! There was scaffolding in the sanctuary to hang a projector during our dress rehearsal. Chris and Gavin have since said that allowing us to do this was a bad idea.
While at Citylight, I went through licensing with our denomination and then found a church to serve in Minneapolis, MN. We have since had three kids, and I finished my Masters of Divinity. Then we moved to Sioux Falls and served in a budding church plant until we stepped away. Jesus then brought us here!
Tells Us About Your Fam?
Amy grew up in Papillion, NE, and came to faith in Jesus during her 20’s. We both are into raising our kids to follow Jesus. Still, Amy is incredibly passionate about helping ladies, especially moms, grow in their desire, and their ability to read and understand Scripture. She also loves to read to the point that she signed up to get free books from publishers in exchange for a blog post and a review. We have three daughters: Mosley (6), Blaire (3), and Penelope (18 months). They’ve gone through a lot! Once we move to Council Bluffs, they will have lived through five moves and four states in 6 years. We cling to Jesus as we set a solid foundation for our family on Him and His Word during what feels like an extended season of transitions. So, we are going to figure out what normal is like with all of you!
What are you Excited and Passionate About?
For my role here at Citylight CB, I am excited about the whole thing, and I am not exaggerating. I get to be a part of how Jesus is working through Citylight Kids, Citylight Student Ministry, and Citylight U! It’s a beautiful thing to guide these ministries as they make disciples, love each other, and reach people who haven’t believed the Gospel yet. These are critical ages of life for people to follow Jesus! I get to see kids and students begin to use their gifts in new and fresh ways inside and outside of the Church and start their own families. I am also excited to help families become homes of discipleship, where parents are discipling their kids day in and day out. Discipleship is hard! We know it! It is also something that is empowered and made beautiful and effective by God! Ultimately, I am passionate about seeing the Church and the family come together in unity to raise the next generation to continue following Jesus and be empowered by the Spirit to live out God’s mission on earth. The Spirit doesn’t skip a generation!
As a pastor in general, you don’t get a Masters of Divinity if you are not into all things Bible. I love Bible commentaries using the original Biblical languages in my study and generally figuring out what passages are saying and how the whole Bible fits together. I also find Church history fascinating, especially the prayer practices of God’s people from Biblical men and women to 21st-century saints. As I have served as a pastor, I’ve discovered that Jesus made me passionate about the strategic side of ministry with discipleship and leading a community of believers.
What are Your Hobbies?
Hobbies are hard to come by in our season. I would love to catch big fish, but not just any fish— Big fish like Iowa DNR’s Master Angler Award size fish. Throw in a boat, camping, and maybe some hiking, and you’ve got a good weekend. More typical hobbies in our season of life are things like reading, beating everybody at board games, and generally doing all of these things and more with Amy and the girls.
We are not only excited to be here with you all–– we are praising and thanking God for bringing us here!